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FAEM   ECHOES. 


BY 

F.   RATCHFORD    STARR,   M.A., 
ECHO    FARM, 

ItZTOHFIEIiD     OONNEOTIOUT. 


ILLUSTBATES. 


NEW  YORK: 

ORANGE    JUDD    COMPANY, 

751  BROADWAY. 
1883. 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1881,  by  the 

ORANGE  JXn)D   COMPANY, 

In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Waaltington. 


Annex 
S 


38^ 
1882) 


TO 

MT  MUCH   ESTEEMED    FRIEND^ 
THE    HONORABLE 

O.    S.    SEYMOUR, 

of  lAtchfteU, 

EX    CHIEF   JUSTICE    OP    CONNECTICUT, 

JN  TOKEN   OF  MT  BIOH  PERSONAL  BEOABB, 

AND  APPRECIATION   OF   THE 

EEABTT  GBEETINGS  ALWAYS  EXTENDED  ME 

AS   HIS 

BEOTEER    FARMER. 


CONTENTS. 


Chapter  I. 

PAOB. 

What  led  me  to  the  Farm .    9 

Chapteb  II. 
City  and  Country _ 14 

Chapter  III. 
Litchfield 20 

Chapter  IV. 
Is  Farming  Respectable? 29 

Chapter  V. 
Early  Experiences - 36 

Chapter  VI. 
Leamlngto  Plow 49 

Chapter  VTE. 
Farm  Hands 56 

Chapter  Vin. 
Farm  ATiimala 68 

Chapter  IX. 
Farm  Buildings  and  Farming  Implements 86 

Chapter  X. 
Can  Farming  in  New  England  be  made  Remunerative? 103 


C?) 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE. 

Three  o'clock — ^Time  for  Refreshments 19 

Learning  to  Plow 50 

Subduing  a  Runaway  Horse 55 

Uncle  Bill 58 

Daisy 70 

Bull,  Litchfield 73 

Plan  of  Bams 87 

Interior  of  one  of  the  Bams 88 

Bam  for  Dry  Cows  and  Young  Stock. 93 

Cream  Strainer 94 

Rotary  Butter  Worker,  and  Prints  of  Butter 95 

Testing  Quality  of  Milk 97 

Bottling  Milk 99 

MHk  Bottle. ....100 

Hay  Loader 101 

Making  a  Mound  of  Stones 107 

(8) 


FxlRM    ECHOES. 


CHAPTER    I. 
WHAT    LED    ME    TO    THE    FARM. 

In  a  young  and  extended  country  like  this,  where  new 
avenues  to  wealth  are  continually  being  opened  up,  it  is 
not  to  be  wondered  at  that  comparatively  few  of  its  men 
of  business  work  moderately.  The  high  pressure  at 
which  others  are  driving  their  commercial  affairs  irresist- 
ibly impels  us  to  put  on  more  steam  than  we  should 
otherwise  do.  The  race  in  many  a  business  career  is  not 
unlike  the  steamer  races  against  both  time  and  each  other. 

In  common  with  many  other  men  of  business,  I  made 
the  grave  mistake  of  working  so  assiduously  at  my  office 
duties  as  to  disregard  frequent  admonitions  that  my  health 
was  thus  being  impaired.  I  vainly  hoped  that  the  inces- 
sant strain  would  soon  so  far  cease  as  to  make  it  safe  for 
me  to  continue  to  labor  on  without  rest.  Such  hoping 
against  hope  is  a  sad  delusion.  Could  those  thus  cir- 
cumstanced realize  their  position,  they  would  speedily 
seek  relief ;  but  who  that  is  thus  engaged  in  an  extensive 
and  increasing  business  can  calmly  or  rightly  compre- 
hend his  condition  ?  He  must  retire  from  it  for  a  season 
in  order  to  get  a  correct  view  of  it. 


10  FARM   ECHOES. 

The  dry  inland  heat  of  Philadelphia  summers  told  upon 
me  the  more  severely  because  of  my  neglect  to  exchange 
it  occasionally  for  my  native  sea-air.  Before  I  was  aware 
of  the  fact,  my  health  had  become  so  impaired  that  I  was 
compelled  to  relinquish  at  once  all  office  duties.  Happily 
I  did  so  before  it  was  too  late  to  recuperate.  Thousands 
of  overworked  and  broken  down  men  of  business,  who 
insanely  persisted  in  clinging  too  long  to  their  business, 
are  now  dragging  out  a  miserable  existence,  a  burden  to 
themselves  and  to  all  about  them.  Upon  their  monu- 
ments, when  erected,  should  be  inscribed  "  committed 
suicide  by  too  close  and  persistent  confinement  to  busi- 
ness." Had  they  but  acted  the  common-sense  part  of  re- 
tiring from  a  successful  business  before  their  health  was 
permanently  ruined,  they  might  now  be  enjoying  the 
competence  their  business  talents  secured  to  them. 
Looked  at  even  from  a  selfish  stand-point,  every  one  who 
duly  reflects  upon  this  matter  must  realize  that  it  is  his 
interest  to  toil  in  his  counting-room,  or  store,  only  so 
long  as  he  can  do  so  with  a  healthy  brain  and  a  healthy 
body.  Should  any  dyspeptic  or  otherwise  "rundown" 
man  of  business  read  this,  let  him  heed  the  warning  before 
it  is  too  late.  There  are  so  many  such,  it  is  not  unlikely 
that  this  chance  shot  may  hit  some  of  them,  whether 
they  be  such  as  are  able  to  retire  wholly  from  commercial 
pursuits,  or  the  less  favored  ones  who  should  temporarily 
rest  in  the  business  they  cannot  afford  to  give  up. 

After  being  under  severe  medical  treatment,  and  find- 
ing that  voyaging  across  the  Atlantic  and  sight-seeing  in 
Europe,  though  so  charming,  did  not  produce  the  desired 
cure,  I  purchased  a  large-sized  yacht  and  experienced 


RAKM  ECHOES.  -,     11 

such  benefit  in  cruising  in  her,  that  when,  at  the  end  of 
the  yachting  season,  I  called  upon  my  physician,  he  was 
much  surprised  at  the  change  he  saw  in  me,  and  asked 
what  I  had  been  doing  to  produce  it.  When  informed 
that  I  had  "employed  anothec  doctor,"  he  was  quite 
taken  aback,  and  in  a  significant  tone  of  voice  asked, 
**  What  doctor  ?"  Upon  being  informed  that  it  was  *'  Dr. 
Yacht,"  he  remarked  that  as  the  sea  was  so  beneficial  to 
me  I  had  "better  follow  it  as  a  profession."  The  ques- 
tion of  yachting  was,  however,  otherwise  disposed  of,  as 
none  of  my  family  could  be  with  me  because  of  their 
dread  of  the  ocean,  and  their  illness  when  upon  it. 
Much  of  my  boyhood  was  spent  in  boating,  and  I  have 
always  had  a  fondness  for  such  amusement.  If,  therefore, 
my  pen  occasionally  jumps  the  track,  and  makes  a  sud- 
den dash  for  old  Ocean,  the  reader  must  pardon  the 
digression. 

After  searching  for  a  summer  residence  among  the  hills 
of  New  England,  I  found  one  a  mile  east  of,  and  about 
sixty  feet  above  the  village  of  Litchfield,  Connecticut,  the 
natural  advantages  of  which  so  charmed  me  that  I  pur- 
chased it.  Sixty-six  acres  were  far  more  land  than  I 
wanted,  as  I  had  not  the  most  remote  idea  of  being  inter- 
ested in  farming,  but  that  was  the  size  of  the  property  I 
then  purchased.  What  to  do  with  the  surplus  land,  and, 
it  may  be  added  surplus  rocks,  I  did  not  stop  to  consider. 

Clearing  and  grading  the  house  grounds,  gave  me  a 
taste  for  such  work,  and  I  was  soon  busily  superintending 
it  on  an  enlarged  scale.  Acres  of  unproductive  land  were 
"subdued,"  to  use  a  local  and  expressive  term.  The 
contest  was,  at  times,  such  as  made  it  also  a  decidedly 


12 »  FABM  ECHOES. 

appropi^late  term.  The  land  and  rocks  had  long  dwelt 
together  in  indolence,  and  were  loth  to  part  company,  or 
to  work ;  but  the  latter  were  forced  into  substantial  walls, 
surrounding  and  guarding  the  fields  upon  which  they  had 
<pent  80  many  useless  years.  The  lands,  thus  freed  from 
an  incumbrance  as  ruinous  as  a  mortgage,  were  promptly 
at  work  honestly  and  successfully,  for  their  new  owner, 
as  if  in  acknowledgment  of  his  claims  upon  them,  and 
his  detestation  of  indolence  in  any  form. 

Each  fall  I  returned  to  my  Philadelphia  home,  greatly 
benefited  by  my  out-door  occupation  of  the  summer.  So 
charmed  were  we  with  our  country  home  that  each  suc- 
ceeding year  found  my  family  and  myself  arriving  earlier 
and  leaving  it  later  in  the  season.  The  sixty-six  acres 
grew,  not  by  natural  growth,  but  by  subsequent  pur- 
chases, to  nearly  four  hundred  acres,  which,  with  over  two 
hundred  acres  leased,  with  the  right  of  purchase,  gave 
the  present  farm  an  area  of  about  six  hundred  acres. 

My  personal  attention  to  the  work  I  had  laid  out,  was 
absolutely  necessary.  I  wanted  certain  things  done  in  a 
certain  way,  and  it  was  equally  "  certain  "  that  they  would 
not  be  so  done  unless  under  my  strict  personal  super- 
yision. 

This,  it  must  be  remembered,  was  when  I  first  came  to 
Litchfield,  years  ago,  and  at  a  time  when  T  was  surrounded 
by  "hands"  temporarily  employed,  all  of  whom  were 
strangers  to  me,  and  to  my  way  of  doing  things.  Among 
them  were  some  excellent,  reliable  men,  who  are  now  per- 
manently or  occasionally  working  for  me.  General 
Woodruff,  when  called  from  his  Litchfield  farm  by  pub- 
lic duties,  would  instruct  his  men  what  to  do  during  his 


FAipi   ECHOES.  13 

absence,  and  would  invariably  be  provoked  by  finding  th»t 
the  work  marked  oat  by  him  had  not  been  completed,  if 
commenced,  while  he  was  away.  Upon  one  occasion  he 
was  exceedingly  annoyed  to  find  that  his  orders  had  been 
totally  disregarded,  and  he  so  expressed  himself  to  his 
men.  Among  them  was  one  whom  the  others  supposed 
to  be  half-witted,  but  it  may  be  safely  questioned  whether 
such  was  the  fact,  for  he  followed  the  General  a  short 
distance,  after  his  out-burst  of  displeasure,  and  said  to 
him,  "  Gineral !  Don't  you  know  if  a  man  wants  a  thing 
did,  he  must  did  it  hisself  ?"  To  work  a  farm  by  proxy 
is,  as  a  rule,  one  of  the  greatest  of  follies,  and  it  is  not 
to  be  wondered  at  that  so  many  who  try  it  come  to  grief. 
If  you  cannot  give  your  personal  attention  to  a  farm, 
you  had  better  not  have  one.  Nine-tenths  of  the  pleasure 
of  owning  a  farm  is  found  in  the  superintendence  of  the 
work  to  be  done,  whether  it  be  grading,  draining,  tilling, 
or  ''subduing"  your  land. 


14         ^  ^  FAKM  ECHOES. 

•  CHAPTER  II. 

CITY    AND    COUNTRY. 

If  city  men  who  undertake  farming  would  only  realize 
their  ignorance  of  such  work,  and  keep  this  fact  con- 
stantly before  them  during  the  first  four  or  five  years  of 
country  life,  they  would  be  greatly  benefited  by  so  doing. 
It  would  guard  them  against  ten  thousand  mistakes,  and 
be  a  saving  to  them  of  quite  as  many  dollars.  They  would 
thus  be  ever  learning,  and  would  probably  have  more 
sound  knowledge  of  practical  farming  at  the  end  of  the 
period  named,  than  many  who  have  spent  a  lifetime  upon 
their  farms,  and  who  have  never,  for  an  instant,  been  out 
of  the  ruts  in  which  their  forefathers  for  generations  back 
have  travelled ;  said  ruts  having  been  made  considerably 
deeper  by  each  generation  that  got  into  them. 

Whether  it  be  the  "  greenhorn  "  from  the  city,  or  the 
equally  green  one,  country  born,  he  who  thinks  that  be 
knows  all  that  need  be  known  of  his  particular  calling,  be 
it  tilling  the  land,  or  any  other  pursuit,  gives  unmis- 
takable proof  of  lamentable  ignorance.  It  is  the  barren 
fruit  tree  which  proudly  stands  erect.  Such  as  are  fruit- 
ful are  humbly  bowed  by  their  own  productiveness,  em- 
blematic of  those  whose  knowledge  humbles  them,  and 
makes  them  thirst  for  more.  It  not  unfrequently  happens 
that  city  men  who  commence  farming  make  themselves 
ridiculous  by  aping  the  country  laborers  in  their  attire, 
etc.  As  well  might  the  "farm  hand,"  who  drives  his 
employer's  herd  of  cattle  to  a  city  market,  through  mud 
and  dust,  do  so  in  fashionable  city  costume  as  the  "city 
farmer,"  so-calle<i,  and  often  not  inappropriately,  don  old 


.<^- 


FAKM   ECHOES.  16 

worn-out  boots,  with  hat  and  coat  to  correspond.  When 
I  see  such  characters,  I  cease  to  v/onder  why  country  peo- 
ple make  sport  of  ''city  folks."  I  would  not  have  those 
from  the  city  dress  in  their  best  apparel  while  in  the  midst 
of  their  men  superintending  farm  work,  but  there  is  an 
appropriate  medium  between  the  two  extremes.  No 
texture,  nor  style  of  dress,  can  make  a  farmer  of  one  who 
is  not  a  farmer  in  any  costume. 

The  city  man  who  goes  upon  his  newly  acquired  farm 
for  the  mere  pleasure  of  working  as  a  day  laborer,  has 
made  a  mistake  he  cannot  too  soon  rectify.  In  not  a  few 
instances  this  has  been  done  "for  the  fun  of  the  thing," 
and  the  results  have  shown  that  the  fun  was  decidedly 
costly.  A  much  greater  amount  of  frolic  could  have  been 
secured  through  other  and  far  less  expensive  channels. 
To  set  before  one's  friends  a  bottle  of  champagne  and  a 
pitcher  of  milk,  as  has  been  done  by  a  fancy  farmer,  and 
say,  "  Help  yourselves,  gentlemen,  to  whichever  you  pre- 
fer, they  cost  me  the  same,"  evidences  that  such  farming 
is  by  no  means  profitable,  however  amusing. 

A  strong,  healthy  man  who  enters  upon  such  a  calling 
as  a  business,  and  who  conducts  it  in  a  sensible,  business- 
like manner,  will  soon  find  that,  however  much  he  may 
desire  to  work  with  his  hands,  this  must  not  be  done  to 
the  exclusion  of  the  brain  work  necessary  to  enable  him 
successfully  to  accomplish  what  he  has  undertaken. 

Countrymen  have  long  been  the  laughing-stock  of  a 
certain  class  of  city  people,  and  vice  versa.  This  debit 
and  credit  account  is,  I  think,  pretty  equally  balanced, 
so  that  neither  side  need  feel  much  chagrined. 

Small  communities  frequently,   but  not  necessarily. 


/ 


16  FARM   ECHOES. 

make  small  minds.  A  conceited  countryman,  who  has 
always  lived  within  himself,  who  imagines  that  he  knows 
all  that  is  worth  knowing,  and  who  does  not  believe  in 
any  world  outside  of  his  own  immediate  surroundings, 
is  quite  as  despicable  an  individual  as  is  to  be  found  in 
any  city  upstart.  There  is  as  much  conceit  beneath  the 
coarsest  garment,  as  can  bo  found  in  those  who  are  the 
most  foppishly  dressed. 

"Why  some  city  people  who  visit  the  country  should 
disregard,  except  by  ridicule,  the  polite,  if  rustic,  bow 
of  country  adults  and  children,  I  have  never,  from  early 
years,  been  able  to  comprehend.  Every  such  salute,  not 
as  respectfully  acknowledged,  proves  the  saluting  party 
the  better  mannered  of  the  two,  no  matter  what  the  dif- 
ference in  their  external  surroundings.  A  very  good  story 
is  told  of  a  country  girl  thus  rudely  treated.  A  teamster, 
bound  for  the  city  with  a  load  of  slaughtered  hogs,  re- 
ceived a  polite  courtesy  from  her,  and  insultingly  laughed 
at  her  for  **  bo  wing  to  a  lot  of  dead  hogs." — "Oh,  no," 
replied  the  girl,  *'  I  bowed  to  the  live  one  !" 

Like  city,  like  country.  " Second-hand"  articles  of  va- 
rious kinds  are  for  sale  everywhere.  Who  has  been  accus- 
tomed to  see  auction  stores,  or  depositories  where  "  second- 
hand" goods  were  for  sale,  and  has  not  wondered  why 
f  "third"  and  "fourth"  hand  goods  were  not  advertised, 
some  of  the  articles  having  been  in  at  least  "thirty  "  hands. 

This  chapter  upon  the  relative  politeness  of  city  and 
country  people,  must  contain  my  grateful  acknowledg- 
ment of  the  disinterested  generosity  of  some  of  my  newly- 
made  country  acquaintances,  else  their  generosity  will 
exceed  my  gratitude. 


FARM   ECHOES.  IT 

It  was  touching,  the  promptness  and  eagerness  with 
which  they  sought  me,  when  I  first  came  here,  and  offered 
me  "second-hand"  wagons,  "second-hand"  harnesses, 
and  "second-hand"  articles  too  numerous  to  specify;  all 
"nearly  as  good  as  new,"  and  all  "very  cheap." 

There  were  lots  of — not  second-hand — ^but  broken  down 
horses  offered  me,  also  whole  farms,  and  many  of  them ; 
but  I  cannot  say  through  how  many  "hands"  they  had 
passed.  I  do  not  ask  the  reader  to  suppose  that  they  who 
so  generously  proffered  these  things  were  actuated  by  any 
otlier  than  disinterested  motives.  He  must  draw  his 
own  conclusions.  The  eagerness  with  which  the  arti- 
cles were  offered,  certainly  proved  the  hearty  desire  of 
the  owners  that  I  should  have  them,  and  hence  my  hearty 
thanks.  Happily  this  sort  of  thing  did  not  last  long.  I 
had  often  received  similar  attentions  in  my  city  life,  and 
was  fully  prepared  for  them.  I  tried  to  give  a  civil 
refusal  to  all  such  proposals,  and  hope  I  succeeded  in  so 
doing,  though  I  am  inclined  to  believe  that  some  of  my 
rejections  were  decidedly  emphatic,  and  that  they  aided 
not  a  little  in  stopping  the  annoyance. 

It  was  so  evident  that  some  who  came  to  me  on  such 
errands  paid  me  the  compliment  of  taking  me  for  a  fool, 
if  I  may  be  permitted  to  use  such  a  word,  that  I  hope  I 
was  justified  in  seeking  comfort,  I  will  not  say  revenge, 
in  feeling  that  they  admirably  personated  that  character 
themselves.    These  cases  were,  on  the  whole,  exceptional. 

Not  a  few  of  the  farmers  around  me  have  proved  them- 
selves as  noble  specimens  of  refined  and  honorable  men 
as  can  be  found  anywhere.  Beneath  a  rough  and  un- 
polished exterior,  which  might,  perhaps,  provoke  a  smile 


18  FARM  ECHOES. 

from  the  city  exquisite,  I  have  often  found  men  of  the 
keenest  and  most  delicate  sense  of  refinement  and  honor. 

There  is  a  saying  more  ancient  than  elegant,  telling 
who  made  the  country  and  who  the  city ;  one  decidedly 
complimentary  to  the  former,  but  tremendously  severe 
upon  the  latter.  However  distinctly  the  lines  of  separa- 
tion may  have  been  drawn  in  "the  good  old  times,"  but 
few  traces  of  them  are  now  left.  City  and  country  have 
so  intermingled  as  almost  entirely  to  erase  these  lines. 
Each,  to  a  great  extent,  shares  the  good  and  bad  of  the 
other.     Each  sustains  the  other. 

Do  not  give  this  part  of  the  country  credit  for  the  fol- 
lowing, for  it  belongs  to  another  rural  district. 

It  is  said  that  three  farmers  went  to  New  York  to  sell 
an  article  in  which  they  were  jointly  interested.  Having 
disposed  of  it  advantageously,  and  being  flush  of  money, 
they  resolved  to  go  to  a  leading  and  fashionable  restaurant 
and  have  "a,  grand  dinner.  New  York  style."  It  was  left 
with  the  proprietor  of  the  establishment  to  furnish  what 
he  considered  "first-rate."  They  made  up  their  minds 
that  they  would  have  to  pay  probably  as  much  as  five  dol- 
lars each,  fifteen  dollars  in  all,  and  were  astounded  when 
called  upon  to  pay  forty-five  dollars,  fifteen  dollars  each. 
Of  course,  there  was  nothing  for  them  to  do  but  settle 
their  bill  and  leave.  Out  they  went,  full  of  wrath  be- 
cause of  the  imposition  which  they  supposed  had  been 
practised  upon  them.  Two  of  the  three  kept  up  a  long 
and  lively  abuse  of  the  proprietor,  when  the  third  came 
to  their  relief  with  the  consoling  announcement  "Never 
mind,  my  friends ;  that  bad  man  has  been  punished  for 
his  sin.     I  have  hig  spoons  in  my  pocket." 


FARM   ECHOES. 


19 


20  FARM  ECHOES. 

CHAPTEE     III. 
LITCHFIELD. 

Though  New  England  abounds  in  charming  Tillages, 
none  are  more  lovely  in  aspect  or  healthy  in  location, 
than  Litchfield,  Connecticut.  Nowhere  in  our  country  # 
is  there  a  more  intellectual  and  delightful  society  than 
here,  though  there  evidently  was  a  time  in  the  early  his- 
tory of  the  village  when  this  was  not  the  case,  for  the 
wife  of  one  of  the  first  settlers  wrote  home  to  her  family 
in  England  that  she  *'had  no  society  but  wolves  and 
Presbyterians."  Poor  secluded  lady  !  It  is  a  pity  she 
did  not  explain  which  she  most  dreaded. 

Litchfield  has  its  Episcopal,  Congregational,  Method- 
ist, and  Catholic  Churches,  its  first  National  Bank,  its 
"Litchfield  Enquirer,"  its  three  Hotels,  and  numerous 
boarding-houses  for  the  summer  boarders,  who  come  here 
in  large  and  annually  increasing  numbers. 

Extensive  manufactories  of  various  kinds  are  success- 
fully worked  in  surrounding  towns,  but  there  are  none  in 
this  village.  Its  ''aristocracy"  is  accused  of  having  re- 
tarded its  commercial  prosperity.  Whether  this  be  the 
case  or  not,  the  refining  influences  which  have  so  long 
pervaded  the  community  are  noticeable  everywhere. 

The  longevity  of  some  of  its  inhabitants  is,  certainly,  a 
proof  of  its  healthfulness.  There  are  several  remarkable 
cases  of  advanced  age  in  this  neighborhood.  It  was 
stated  by  one  that  the  period  between  the  ages  of  ninety- 
nine  and  one  hundred  was  the  most  critical  of  human  life, 
80  that  it  is  impossible  to  say  who  will  reach  the  five  score. 

Some  years  ago  a  member  of  the  Litchfield  Congrega- 


FAEM  ECHOES.  21 

tional  Society  attended  service  in  the  church  on  the  one 
hundredth  anniversary  of  his  birth.  The  pews  were  then 
so  arranged  that  the  congregation  faced  the  door,  and  as 
he  entered  all  rose  as  a  mark  of  respect,  and  remained 
standing  until  he  was  seated  in  his  pew. 

I  recently  visited  a  lady  residing  about  four  miles  from 
me,  who  is  more  than  a  hundred  years  old,  having  been 
born  February  12,  1780.  Although  suffering  from  the 
effects  of  a  cold  which  had  troubled  her  for  several  weeks, 
she  bore  none  of  those  signs  of  extreme  old  age  which  are 
so  distressing  to  behold.  For  eighty  years  she  has  occupied 
the  house  in  which  she  now  lives.  In  early  youth,  if  not 
in  childhood,  she  became  "a  child  of  God,"  and  seems  to 
have  had  great  enjoyment  in  her  religious  experience. 
When  I  dwelt  upon  the  many  years  she  had  been  spared 
to  test  the  power  of  religion,  and  asked  if  she  had  ever 
had  cause  to  regret  the  choice  she  made  in  early  life,  she 
answered  most  emphatically,  "No,  indeed."  At  the  re- 
quest of  her  grandson  (himself  the  head  of  a  family), 
she  sang  a  hymn  for  me,  and  I  was  impressed  by  the 
selection  she  made : 

"  O  when  shall  I  see  Jesus  ?" 
No  wonder  this  aged  pilgrim,  longing  for  her  eternal 
home,  was  prompted  to  ask  this  question  in  sacred  song. 

The  dryness  of  the  atmosphere  in  this  region  of  country 
is  remarkable.  Though  the  thermometer  registers  a  lower 
temperature  than  in  New  York,  or  Philadelphia,  fisr  in- 
stance, the  winter's  cold  is  not  felt  so  much  as  in  those 
cities.  There  is  no  such  dampness  here  as  there,  piercing 
one  through  and  through. 

The  history  of  Litchfield  is  too  well  and  too  favorably 


22  FAEM  ECHOES. 

known  to  call  for  any  extended  publicity  at  my  hands. 
Interesting  histories  of  this  town  have  been  written  by 
Hon.  George  C.  Woodruff  and  by  Mr.  Payne  K.  Kilbourn, 
who  narrate  numerous  thrilling  incidents  connected  with 
the  Indians  in  the  early  settlement  of  the  town,  and  with 
the  War  of  Independence,  Litchfield  having  been  an  im- 
portant depot  for  military  stores  and  provisions,  at  the 
latter  period.  Erom  these  historians  I  shall  make  several 
extracts. 

The  Indian  deed  of  this  town  was  executed  March  2, 
1715-16.  It  may  gratify  some  of  my  readers  to  know  by 
whom  it  was  signed,  though  I  do  not  suppose  they  will 
recognize  among  the  signatures  those  of  any  old  personal 
acquaintances,  unless  it  be  one  in  the  list  who  certainly 
has  numerous  descendants  at  the  present  day,  scattered 
everywhere,  and  I  fear  not  a  few  of  them  "descend" 
fearfully  low.  It  is  correctly  placed  as  the  second  "  C," 
so  liable  is  it  to  cause  people  to  see  double.  Who  that 
seeks  the  companionship  of  such  a  crooked  thing  as  a 
"corkscrew"  can  expect  to  keep  straight  ? 
(copy.  ) 
Signed,  sealed,  and  delivered  in  our  presence. 

Chusqunnoaz  '^  his  mark  [L.  S.] 
Weroamaug  ft  his  mark.  Corkscrew  (O  his  mark  [L.  S.] 
Wognacug     %  his  mark.         Qiiiump  ^  his  mark  [L.  S.] 

Tonhocks      ~t~  his  mark.         Magnash  -f"  his  mark  [L.  S.] 

Kehow  ^  his  mark  [L.  S.] 

John  Mitchell.  Sepunkum       0  his  mark  [L.  S.] 

Joseph  Minor.  Poni  (^  his  mark  [L.  S.] 

Wonposet        P^  his  mark  [L.  S.] 
Suckqunnackqueen  ^  his  mark  [L.  S.] 

Taweemne      ''I"'  his  mark  [L.  S.] 
-^  Mansumpansh  (^  his  mark  [L.  S.] 


FAEM   ECHOES.  23 

The  legal  phraseology  now  in  use,  "Know  all  men  by 
these  presents,"  does  not  seem  to  have  been  observed  in 
those  by-gone  days  ;  nor  yet  the  one  substituted  for  it, 
doubtless  by  some  miserable,  disappointed,  and  cross- 
grained  old  bachelor,  "Know  one  woman,  so  that  all 
men  will  be  sure  to  know." 

The  following  interesting  narrative  is  from  **  Travels 
in  New  England  and  New  York,"  by  President  Dwight, 
of  Yale  College  : 

"  Not  many  years  after  the  county  of  Litchfield  began 
to  be  settled  by  the  English,  a  strange  Indian  came  one 
day  into  an  inn  in  the  town  of  Litchfield  in  the  dusk  of 
the  evening,  and  requested  the  hostess  to  furnish  him 
with  some  drink  and  supper.  At  the  same  time  he  ob- 
served that  he  could  pay  for  neither,  as  he  had  no  success 
in  hunting,  but  promised  payment  as  soon  as  he  should 
meet  with  better  fortune.  The  hostess  refused  him  both 
the  drink  and  the  supper ;  called  him  a  lazy,  drunken, 
good-for-nothing  fellow,  and  told  him  that  she  did  not 
work  so  hard  herself,  to  throw  away  her  earnings  upon 
such  creatures  as  he  was. 

"A  man  who  sat  by,  and  observed  that  the  Indian,  then 
turning  about  to  leave  so  inhospitable  a  place,  showed  by 
his  countenance  that  he  was  suffering  very  severely  from 
want  and  weariness,  directed  the  hostess  to  supply  him 
what  he  needed,  and  engaged  to  pay  the  bill  himself. 

"  She  did  so.  When  the  Indian  had  finished  his  sup- 
per, he  turned  to  his  benefactor,  thanked  him,  and  as- 
sured him  that  he  should  remember  his  kindness,  and, 
whenever  he  was  able,  would  faithfully  recompense  it. 

** For  the  present,  he  obsened,  he  could  only  reward  him 


24  FABM   ECHOES. 

with  a  story,  which,  if  the  hostess  would  give  him  leave, 
he  wished  to  tell.  The  hostess,  whose  complacency  had 
been  recalled  by  the  prospect  of  payment,  consented. 
,  **The  Indian,  addressing  himself  to  his  benefactor, 
said  :  '  I  suppose  you  read  the  Bible  ?'  The  man  assented. 
*Well,'  said  the  Indian,  *the  Bible  say  God  made  the 
world,  and  then  He  took  him  and  looked  on  him  and 
say:  'It's  all  very  good.'  Then  He  made  light,  and 
took  him  and  looked  on  him  and  say  :  *  It's  all  very  good.' 
Then  He  made  dry  land  and  water,  and  sun  and  moon, 
and  grass  and  trees,  and  took  him  and  looked  on  him, 
and  say  :  *  It's  all  very  good.' 

" '  Then  he  made  beasts,  and  birds,  and  fishes,  and 
took  him  and  looked  on  him,  and  say :  '  It's  all  very 
good.' 

*'  'Then  He  made  man,  and  took  him  and  looked  on 
him  and  say:  *It's  all  very  good.'  Then  He  made 
woman,  and  took  him  and  looked  on  him,  and  He  no 
dare  say  one  such  word.' 

"  The  Indian  having  told  his  story,  withdrew. 

"  Some  years  after,  the  man  who  had  befriended  him 
had  occasion  to  go  some  distance  into  the  wilderness,  be- 
tween Litchfield,  then  a  frontier  settlement,  and  Albany, 
where  he  was  taken  prisoner  by  an  Indian  scout,  and  car- 
ried to  Canada.  When  he  arrived  at  the  principal  settle- 
ment of  the  tribe,  on  the  southern  border  of  the  St. 
Lawrence,  it  was  proposed  by  some  of  the  captors  that 
he  should  be  put  to  death.  During  the  consultation  an 
old  Indian  woman  demanded  that  he  should  be  given  up 
to  her,  that  she  might  adopt  him  in  the  place  of  a  son 
whom  she  had  lost  in  the  war.     He  was  accordingly 


FAKM   ECHOES.  25 

given  to  her,  and  lived  through  the  succeeding  winter  in 
her  family,  experiencing  the  customary  effects  of  savage 
hospitality. 

**  The  following  summer,  as  he  was  at  work  in  the  forest 
alone,  an  unknown  Indian  came  up  to  him,  and  asked 
him  to  meet  him  at  a  place  which  he  pointed  out,  on  a 
given  day.  The  prisoner  agreed  to  the  proposal,  but  not 
without  some  apprehensions  that  mischief  was  intended 
him.  During  the  interval,  these  apprehensions  increased 
to  such  a  degree  as  to  dissuade  him  effectually  from  ful- 
filling his  engagement.  Soon  after,  the  same  Indian 
found  him  at  his  work  again,  and  very  gravely  reproved 
him  for  iiot  performing  his  promise.  The  man  apolo- 
gized awkwardly  enough,  but  in  the  best  manner  in  his 
power.  The  Indian  told  him  that  he  should  be  satisfied 
if  he  would  meet  him  at  the  same  place  on  a  future  day 
which  he  named.  The  man  promised  to  meet  him,  and 
fulfilled  his  promise.  When  he  arrived  at  the  spot,  he 
found  the  Indian  provided  with  two  muskets,  ammuni- 
tion for  them,  and  knapsacks.  The  Indian  ordered  him 
to  take  one  of  each  and  follow  him.  The  direction  of 
their  march  was  towards  the  south.  The  man  followed, 
without  the  least  knowledge  of  what  he  was  to  do,  or 
whither  he  was  going,  but  concluded  that  if  the  Indian 
intended  him  harm,  he  would  have  dispatched  him  at  the 
beginning,  and  that,  at  the  worst,  he  was  as  safe  where 
he  was  as  he  could  be  in  any  other  place.  Within  a 
short  time,  therefore,  his  fears  subsided,  although  the 
Indian  observed  a  profound  and  mysterious  silence  con- 
cerning tlie  object  of  the  expedition.  In  the  day-time 
they  shot  such  game  as  came  in  their  way,  and  at  night 
3  . 


26  FARM   ECHOES. 

kindled  a  fire,  by  which  they  slept.  After  a  tedious 
journey  of  many  days  they  came  one  morning  to  the  top 
of  an  eminence  presenting  a  prospect  of  a  cultivated 
country  in  which  were  a  number  of  houses. 

**  The  Indian  asked  his  companion  whether  he  knew 
the  place.  He  replied  eagerly  that  it  was  Litchfield. 
His  guide  then,  after  reminding  him  that  he  had  so  many 
years  before  relieyed  the  wants  of  a  famishing  Indian,  at 
an  inn  in  that  town,  subjoined,  '  I  that  Indian ;  now  I 
pay  you,  go  home.' 

"  Having  said  this  he  bade  him  adieu,  and  the  man 
joyfully  returned  to  his  home." 

The  famous  Law  School  of  Judges  Beeves  and  Gould, 
established  here  by  the  former  in  1784,  and  continued 
by  the  latter  until  1833,  has  given  Litchfield  an  almost 
world-wide  reputation.  Judge  George  C.  Woodruff  says  : 
"Young  gentlemen  from  every  section  of  our  nation 
were  educated  here,  and  not  a  few  have  been  distinguished 
as  statesmen  and  jurists."  He  also  refers  in  compli- 
mentary terms  to  the  Female  Seminary  opened  here  by 
Miss  Pierce,  in  1792,  and  continued  under  her  superin- 
tendence for  nearly  forty  years. 

Aaron  Burr  (brother-in-law  of  Judge  Reeves)  "became 
intimately  associated  with  Litchfield.*' 

Colonel  Tallmadge,  who  had  charge  of  Major  Andre, 
and  to  whom  that  unfortunate  *^  Adjutant-General  to  the 
British  Army"  gave  his  open  letter  of  confession,  who 
escorted  that  brave,  but  doomed  man  to  the  scaffold,  and 
who  subsequently  wrote  :  "I  became  so  deeply  attached 
to  Major  Andre  that  I  can  remember  no  instance  whore 
my  affections  were  so  fully  absorbed  jq  fti^y  man,"  made 


FAEM   ECHOES.  27 

Litchfield  his  home  after  the  war,  and  the  Tallmadge 
House,  on  North  street,  is  an  object  of  no  little  interest. 

General  Oliver  Wolcott,  one  of  the  signers  of  the  Dec- 
laration of  Independence,  resided  in  Litchfield.  It  was 
m  his  house,  also  a  prized  relic  of  the  past,  that  the 
leaden  statue  of  George  III.,  destroyed  in  New  York,  and 
sent  here  for  that  purpose,  was  melted  into  bullets.  His 
son.  Governor  Oliver  Wolcott,  Jr.,  was  born  here,  as  was 
also  General  Ethan  Allen,  the  hero  of  Ticonderoga. 

The  Rev.  Lyman  Beeclier  was  for  sixteen  years  pastor 
of  "  The  First  Ecclesiastical  Society  of  Litchfield"  (Con- 
gregational). His  six  sermons  on  Intemperance,  preached 
here  were  *' among  the  earliest  and  most  effective  means 
of  arousing  the  Christian  world  to  the  evils  of  intemper- 
ance. "  It  was  in  this  church  that  the  disturbance  took 
place,  because  of  a  proposition  by  some  of  the  members 
to  heat  the  building  with  a  stove.  Such  an  innovation 
was  violently  opposed  by  many,  but  a  stove  was  finally 
placed  in  the  center  aisle.  The  weather  on  the  succeed- 
ing Sunday  being  mild,  no  fire  was  made  in  the  stove. 

I  am  informed  by  a  gentleman  who  was  present  at  the 
time,  though  so  many  years  ago,  that  some  amusing 
scenes  were  witnessed.  Those  of  the  congregation  in 
favor  of  the  stove  manifested  their  delight  in  various 
ways.  Some  availed  themselves  of  the  opportunity  to 
warm  themselves  by  it  before  going  to  tlieir  pews,  taking 
care  so  to  protect  their  clothing  that  it  would  not  be 
burned  by  coming  in  contact  with  it. 

The  anti-stove  members  were  greatly  disturbed.  Some 
were  so  overcome  by  the  excessive  heat  as  to  resort  to 


28  FARM   ECHOES. 

fans.  One  was  obliged  to  leave  the  church,  and  another 
actually  fainted  or  imagined  that  she  had  done  so. 

Dr.  Buel's  Home  for  Nervous  Invalids,  established 
here  by  him  in  1858,  is  now  in  the  height  of  its  prosperity, 
and  continues  to  dispense  blessings  to  many  who  seek  its 
shelter,  and  none  the  less  surely,  because  so  unostenta- 
tiously. The  County  Court  House  tells  that  Litchfield  is 
the  County  Seat  of  Litchfield  County. 

Lastly,  because  in  chronological  order,  Litchfield  is  the 
home  of  the  late  Chief  Executive  of  this  State,  the  Hon. 
Charles  B.  Andrews. 

This  charming  spot  is  about  twenty-five  miles  west  of 
Hartford,  and  one  hundred  miles  northeast  of  New  York 
City.  It  is  approached,  on  all  sides,  by  excellent  country 
roads,  and  by  the  Shepaug  Eailroad,  which  connects  it 
with  New  York,  etc.,  via  Norwalk,  also  by  the  Nauga- 
tuck  Railroad,  which  runs  from  Bridgeport  to  Winsted. 
Both  of  these  Railroads  pass  through  valleys  (the  Shepaug 
and  Naugatuck  from  which  they  derive  their  names), 
abounding  in  wild  and  beautiful  scenery. 

Litchfield  is  steadily  advancing  in  public  favor,  as  a 
place  of  summer  resort,  as  is  shown  by  the  annual  addi- 
tion of  dwellings  erected  by  the  best  class  of  citizens 
from  New  York,  New  Haven,  and  elsewhere,  and  by  the 
increase  of  summer  boarders.  The  village  stands  proudly 
upon  an  eminence  of  about  eleven  hundred  feet  above  the 
sea,  as  if  conscious  of  its  past  history  and  its  present  at- 
tractiveness. 


FABM   ECHOES.  29 

CHAPTER  IV. 
IS    FARMING    RESPECTABLE? 

No  wonder  the  reader  smiles  at  a  question  so  intensely 
absurd. 

However  unnecessary  it  may  appear  to  every  well  bal- 
anced mind,  there  are  some,  I  hope  not  many,  whose 
minds  are,  unfortunately,  not  well  balanced,  and  who 
need  to  be  enlightened  upon  this  subject. 

It  is  an  old  saying,  and  I  am  sorry  to  add,  a  very  true 
one,  that  "  all  the  fools  are  not  dead  yet,"  for  some  have 
crossed  my  path,  in  changing  from  city  to  country  life, 
who  manifested  such  an  aversion  to  the  occupation  of 
farming  as  would  cause  those  not  on  their  guard  to  sus- 
pect that  there  must  be  something  discreditable  insepa- 
rably connected  with  it. 

Do  I  go  far  enough  back,  and  to  a  source  suflBciently 
high  and  convincing,  when  I  quote  from  the  first  and 
second  chapters  of  my  Bible  ? 

"  God  said  Let  there  be  light ;  and  there  was  light." 
So  it  was  in  regard  to  the  *'  firmament,"  etc.  "  He  spake 
and  it  was  done."  Not  so,  however,  in  the  creation  of 
the  "Garden  eastward  in  Eden."  "The  Lord  God 
planted  "  it  Himself,  we  are  distinctly  told.  Having  put 
this  garden  in  perfect  order,  and  baving  watered  it  by  the 
river  which  he  made  to  pass  through  it,  a  fit  and  beauti- 
ful emblem  of  that  river  "the  streams  whereof  shall 
make  glad  the  City  of  God,"  He  placed  the  man  whom 


80  FARM   ECHOES. 

He  created  in  His  own  image — man  before  he  had  sinned 
— ^in  the  garden,  "to  dress  it,  and  to  keep  it." 

The  laborious  work  had  all  been  done,  man  had  only 
**  to  dress  it,  and  to  keep  it. "  There  were  no  thorns  nor 
thistles  then.  No  '*  sweat  of  the  brow,"  nor  aught  to 
weary  or  sadden.  No  curse  nor  death.  The  labor  and 
toil,  the  curse  and  death,  came  after  Adam's  sin,  and 
were  endured  outside  the  garden,  not  in  it.  No  place  is 
now  exempt  from  them.  Aching  and  sweating  brows  are 
everywhere  where  there  is  toil,  whether  it  be  in  the  study, 
the  counting-house,  the  workshop,  or  the  farm.  God's 
chosen  occupation  for  sinless  man  was  that  of  "keeping" 
the  field  or  garden  He  had  planted  and  stocked  for  him, 
God  thus  made  Agriculture  the  most  honored  and  digni- 
fied calling  in  which  man  could  be  engaged. 

Noah  was  no  sooner  out  of  the  Ark  than  he  "  began  to 
be  a  husbandman  "  ;  so  that  husbandry  was  the  first  oc- 
cupation of  man  before  and  after  the  flood.  Abraham 
"was  rich  in  cattle."     Lot  also  "had  flocks  and  herds." 

Isaac  "went  out  to  meditate  in  the  field  at  eventide," 
but  it  was  not,  it  may  safely  be  supposed,  upon  the 
product  of  that  field  that  he  then  meditated,  for  the 
young  man,  we  are  informed,  "lifted  up  his  eyes  and 
saw  the  camels  were  coming."  Knowing  the  errand 
upon  which  they  started,  his  thoughts  doubtless  centered 
in  the  fair  young  maiden  who  accompanied  them  on  their 
return.  Afterwards,  however,  he  is  found  sowing  in  the 
land  of  Gerar,  and  so  successful  was  his  farming,  that 
he  made  "an  hundred  fold  "  the  first  year,  and  soon  pos- 
Bessed  such  flocks  and  herds,  and  such  influence,  as  made 
the  king  dread  his  power  and  request  him  to  move  else- 


FAEM   ECHOES.  31 

where,  and  then  to  seek  him,  whither  he  had  removed, 
in  order  to  secure  his  favor. 

It  was  not  in  the  palace  of  Egypt's  king  that  God  pre- 
pared Moses  to  be  the  leader  of  Israel's  mighty  host,  but 
in  keeping  the  flock  of  Jethro,  his  father-in-law.  It  was 
not  in  the  palace  of  Saul,  but  in  caring  for  his  father's 
sheep,  that  David  was  qualified  to»become  the  ruler  of  a 
kingdom. 

Gideon  was  called  from  the  "threshing  floor"  to  fight 
and  subdue  the  Midianitish  host. 

Elisha,  while  in  the  act  of  plowing,  was  honored  by 
God  with  the  mantle  of  the  Prophet  Elijah. 

Uzziah  "loved  husbandry,"  and  if  the  youthful  king 
of  Judah  had  been  content  with  such  lawful  pastime,  he 
might  have  escaped  leprosy. 

Paul  was  a  tent-maker.  The  first  disciples  of  our 
blessed  Lord  were  fishermen,  and  though  the  Son  of  God 
was  a  carpenter,  yet  shepherds,  busy  **  keeping  watch  over 
their  flocks  by  night,"  were  the  chosen  ones  to  whom  the 
Angels  first  announced  the  "glad  tidings"  of  His  birth. 
He  "was  of  the  house  and  lineage  of  David,"  and  took 
many  of  His  parables  from  agricultural  pursuits.  He  re- 
peatedly pictured  them  in  His  favorite  expression  "The 
kingdom  of  Heaven  is  likened  nnto" — and  not  only 
represented  Himself  as  "  He  that  soweth  the  good  seed," 
but  gloried  in  the  fact  that  His  Father  was  "The  Hus- 
bandman. " 

Despise  not  the  Abrahamic  calling,  however  much  and 
however  justly  you  may  despise  the  unworthy  ones  en- 
gaged in  it.  They  disgrace  themselves,  not  their  calling. 
It  cannot  be  thus  tarnished.     In  turning  from  sacred  to 


32  FARM  ECHOES. 

profane  history,  we  will  carry  with  us  the  echo  of  the 
Almighty's  voice  : 

"THE  CATTLE  UPOIT  A  THOUSAND  HILLS  ARE  MINE." 

The  Ancients  engaged  extensively  in  farming,  and 
deemed  it  the  loftiest  occupation  in  which  they  could  be 
employed.  Cincinnatus,  Cato,  and  others,  might  be  cited 
as  representative  men  of  their  times,  who  left  their  plows 
and  hastened  to  the  rescue  of  their  country.  Though 
they  did  not  beat  their  "  swords  into  plowshares,"  they 
gladly  returned  from  the  fields  they  had  reddened  with 
the  blood  of  their  enemies,  to  those  they  made  "white 
unto  the  harvest."  Farmers  by  preference,  they  were 
the  ablest  of  statesmen  and  warriors  when  thus  needed. 

Down  through  the  intervening  ages  there  have  been 
hosts  of  just  such  brave  and  true  men,  though  not  so 
conspicuous,  who  have  been  trained  in  farming  districts 
and  in  farm  pursuits,  for  just  such  heroic  deeds. 

Connecticut  boasts  of  her  Putnam,  who  left  his  plow 
for  a  like  noble  purpose.  Washington's  chief  delight  was 
in  working  his  farm  ;  and  he  was  as  great  and  as  honored 
there,  as  when  leading  the  army  or  presiding  over  the 
affairs  of  this  nation,  which,  in  common  with  all  other 
nations,  to-day  looks  to  its  rural  districts  for  defence 
from  any  present  or  impending  foe. 

The  following  is  quoted  from  "Letters  of  Agricola," 
published  at  Halifax,  N.  S.,  in  1822,  by  John  Young, 
Esquire,  Secretary  of  the  Provincial  Agricultural  Society 
of  Nova  Scotia,  and  Honorary  Member  of  the  Massachu- 
setts and  Montreal  Agricultural  Societies,  who  did  much 
through  his  writings,  and  by  his  practical  and  successful 


FABM   ECHOES.  33 

farming  at  Willow  Park,  Halifax,  to  advance  the  science  of 
his  chosen  and  honored  profession.  "  In  England,  Dukes, 
Marquises,  Earls,  Baronets,  and  all  ranks  of  nobility  emu- 
late each  other,  not  merely  in  patronizing  husbandry,  but 
in  actively  engaging  in  it."  Would  that  the  large  landed 
proprietors  in  England  and  Ireland  were  more  generally 
engaged  in  agricultural  pursuits.  There  is  infinitely 
more  honor  and  more  enjoyment  in  these  employments 
than  in  the  pastime  in  which  some  indulge.  To  monop- 
ohze  vast  tracts  of  the  most  fertile  lands  in  these  fertile 
Islands,  and  persist  in  keeping  them  in  an  unproductive 
state,  neither  tilling  them,  nor  suffering  them  to  be  tilled ; 
thus  denying  to  thousands  of  poor  but  honest  husband- 
men a  means  of  subsistence,  rather  than  permit  them  to 
labor  for  their  own  support,  and  for  the  direct  and  mani- 
fest benefit  of  their  employers  or  landlords ;  is  very  much 
like  having  ten  talents  and  burying  them  all  in  a  napkin. 
If  there  are  duties  devolving  upon  the  rich,  as  well  as  the 
poor,  such  landed  proprietors  fall  far  short  of  performing 
theirs.  The  grand  inscription  upon  the  Royal  Exchange, 
in  London, 

"The  eaxth  is  the  Lord's  and  the  fuhiess  thereof," 

is  a  silent  but  decided  rebuke  to  them. 

Were  it  only  the  private  interests  of  such  men  that 
suffer  by  this  exclusiveness,  or  whatever  it  may  be  called, 
there  would  be  no  such  ground  for  complaint  as  is  called 
forth  by  this  great  national  abuse. 

Prince  Edward  Island,  one  of  the  fairest  and  most  pro- 
ductive garden  spots  on  earth,  suffered  long  and  sorely 
from  that  remnant  of  the  feudal  system.  Seigniories.  The 
burden  became  too  grievous  to  be  longer  endured,  and 


34  FARM    ECHOES. 

the  Colonial  Government,  not  many  years  ago,  threw  ofE 
the  yoke  by  purchase.  A  disheartened  people,  thus  re- 
leased, were  encouraged  to  improve  what  now  became 
their  property,  and  have  ever  since  steadily  and  surely 
added  to  the  prosperity  of  the  Island,  as  well  as  to  their 
own.  There  is  no  reason  to  suppose  that  the  former  pro- 
prietors were  any  the  worse  off  for  having  received  an 
equivalent  for  what  they  sold. 

To  retard,  in  any  way,  the  prosperity  of  one's  country, 
especially  lu  diminishing  its  food-yielding-  capacity,  is  to 
prove  one's  self  its  enemy. 

The  model  farm  of  the  late  Prince  Consort  of  England 
was  the  pride  of  that  model  man,  and  is  one  of  the  grand- 
est monuments  to  his  honored  name. 

It  was  said,  I  think,  by  Jefferson,  that  "  If  God  had  a 
peculiar  people  upon  earth,  they  were  the  farmers."  The 
"if"  here  is  to  be  regretted.  God  certainly  has  His  "pe- 
culiar people  :"  not,  however,  the  farmers,  nor  any  other 
class  of  men  as  such,  but  all  who  rightly  discharge  the 
duties  devolving  upon  them,  whether  in  the  pulpit,  on 
the 'farm,  or  elsewhere.  The  husbandman  is  a  co-worker 
with  God  in  a  "peculiar"  sense.  No  other  class  of  men 
are  such  to  a  greater  degree  except  those  ordained  of  Him 
to  the  Divine  Ministry.  The  one  studies  the  Inspired 
Book,  and  labors  to  unfold  its  mysteries,  and  make 
known  its  truths.  The  other  is  constantly  studying 
God's  book  of  Nature,  and  finds  it  so  filled  with  mystery 
as  to  be  an  independent  and  conclusive  witness  for  its 
Creator.  He  sees  God  everywhere  in  Nature,  and  finds 
it  but  a  short  step  to  turn  from  Nature  to  Nature's  God. 

Every  thoughtful,  right-minded  farmer  has  an  inspira- 


FABM  ECHOES.  35 

tion  not  found  in  any  other  calling.  He  works  God's 
earth,  preparing  it  for  the  desired  crops,  and  when  all  is 
ready  he  plants  the  seed.  There  his  work  ceases.  He 
can  do  no  more,  for  God  alone  can  "give  the  increase." 
In  due  time  myriads  of  blades  of  grass  or  grain  make 
their  appearance  as  so  many  messengers  sent  by  the 
Almighty  to  tell  him  of  the  coming  harvest.  He  rever- 
ently feels  that  God  and  he  have  thus  worked  together, 
and  goes  forth  with  grateful  heart  to  receive  the  ripened 
grain  direct  from  the  hand  of  the  Creator. 


36  FARM   ECHOES. 


CHAPTER  V. 
EARLY    EXPERIENCES. 

I  left  Philadelphia  early  in  the  spring  of  1870  for  Litch- 
field, Conn.,  to  put  my  summer  residence  in  order  for 
my  family.  From  East  Litchfield  Station,  on  the  Nau- 
gatuck  Railroad,  I  came  by  stage  three  miles,  over  roads 
up  hill  nearly  all  the  way,  and  very  heavy  from  the  frost 
coming  out  of  the  ground. 

At  the  summit  of  the  hill,  having  reached  an  altitude 
of  nearly  twelve  hundred  feet  above  the  sea — quite  high 
enough  for  any  stars  belonging  to  this  planet,  I  alighted 
at  my  new  home,  and,  as  I  wrote  my  family,  "went  two 
feet  into  the  mud."  My  letter  created  no  little  surprise, 
as  all  who  read  it,  or  heard  of  it,  supposed  that  I  had 
been  mired  up  to  my  knees,  but  such  was  not  the  case. 
The  mud  was  quite  harmless,  and  though  I  went  into  it 
"  two  feet " — that  is,  both  feet — the  depth  was  not  more 
than  an  inch  or  so. 

I  had  often  seen  much  worse  roads,  though  none  half 
as  bad  as  some  I  have  heard  of,  where,  for  instance,  a 
man  was  working  liis  way  along  as  best  he  could,  and 
came  to  a  hat  which  he  picked  up  in  the  middle  of  the 
road.  To  his  surprise  he  found  he  had  lifted  it  from  the 
head  of  a  man  enveloped  in  the  mud,  who  smilingly  looked 
up  and  asked  for  an  explanation.  The  hat  was  at  once 
replaced  upon  the  head  of  its  owner,  with  an  apology,  and 


FAEM   ECHOES.  37 

with  an  offer  of  assistance. — '^Oh !  no,  I  thank  you,"  was 
the  reply,  "I  have  an  excellent  horse  under  me,  and  shall 
get  along  nicely,  though  somewhat  slowly." 

Numerous  mechanics  were  busy  (I  hope  they  will  for- 
give me  for  using  the  word),  finishing  work  upon  my 
house  and  house  stable,  commenced  the  previous  fall,  at 
the  time  I  purchased  the  property,  so  that  my  dwelling 
did  not  offer  many  attractions. 

A  good-natured  friend,  who  accompanied  me  from 
Philadelphia,  had  been  warned  in  advance  that  he  would 
have  to  rough  it,  and  he  enjoyed  the  roughing  exceed- 
ingly. He  did  not  suffer  as  I  feared  he  might,  but  I 
had  grave  apprehensions  that  he  would  suffer  in  anothei* 
way,  for  his  appetite  became  almost  boundless,  such  was 
the  effect  of  the  climate  upon  him. 

The  record  of  one  breakfast  will  show  that  I  had  good 
cause  for  alarm.  As  to  the  number  of  cups  of  coffee  at 
that  meal,  I  cannot  say  positively ;  but  after  having 
helped  him  three  tiriies  to  beefsteak,  I  remained  at  the 
table  until  he  had  eaten  sixteen  griddle  cakes  of  about 
double  the  usual  size,  and  then  asked  to  be  excused  for  a 
short  time,  as  it  was  necessary  that  I  should  give  direc- 
tions to  the  men  at  work  on  the  grounds  around  my  house. 
1  found  him  eating  beefsteak  on  my  return.  How  much 
of  this  was  due  to  Litchfield  air,  and  how  much  to  an 
excellent  imported  cook,  I  leave  it  with  my  readers  to 
imagine.  It  may  be  well  to  add,  and  it  will  undoubtedly 
surprise  them,  that  my  friend  is  yet  alive. 

It  IS  all  important  that  the  steamers,  in  shooting  the 
rapids  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  get  into  the  right  part  of  the 
current  before  it  becomes  too  strong,  otherwise  they  could 


38  FAEM   ECHOES. 

not  choose  their  position,  nor  change  it  if  wrong,  and 
would  inevitably  be  dashed  to  pieces. 

So  I  felt,  on  entering  upon  the  new  and  untried  work 
of  clearing  land,  etc.,  I  must  get  started  right.  It  would 
never  do  to  make  a  wrong  beginning.  Everything  de- 
pended upon  my  being  thoroughly  posted  at  the  outset. 
This  I  fully  resolved  should  be  the  case,  nor  was  it  long 
before  I  realized  that  I  had  accomplished  this,  and  a  little 
more.  There  was  an  ugly  old  hitching  post  right  in  the 
way  where  I  wished  to  make  a  carriage  drive.  Out  it 
must  come,  happen  what  would,  though  I  had  no  idea 
that  anything  of  that  kind  was  going  to  happen,  until 
all  was  over,  and  I  too.  Indeed,  I  did  not,  for  a  few 
moments  after,  know  exactly  what  had  occurred.  I  was 
no  sooner  conscious  that  I  was  heels  and  post  overhead, 
than  I  "  righted  "  myself,  and  made  a  careful  survey  all 
around,  to  see  if  there  were  any  lookers-on.  It  was  a 
comfort  to  know  that  there  were  none.  The  secret  was 
wholly  with  myself,  externally,  and,  I  may  add,  internally, 
for  my  bones  ached  some.  There  certainly  was  a  "hitch" 
in  that  post  that  I  was  not  prepared  for.  I  had  taken 
my  tirst  lesson,  and  proved  myself  equal  to  getting  out 
old  hitching  posts.  I  had  also  learned  some  of  the  ups 
and  downs  of  country  life,  and  when  the  back  of  my  head 
came  too  suddenly  in  contact  with  the  ground,  I  saw  stars 
that  I  am  sure  were  not  members  of  my  family. 

It  afforded  no  little  amusement  to  many  of  the  old 
farmers  to  see  the  way  in  which  I  began  to  clear  land. 
I  frankly  acknowledge  I  was,  at  times,  wholly  at  a  loss 
how  to  proceed.  I  was  as  much  **at  sea"  as  though  I 
had  been  in  mid  ocean. 


FARM  ECHOES.  39 

Some  excellent  advice  was  occasionally  volunteered.  It 
was  always  thankfully  received,  and  suitably  acknowl- 
edged. Sometimes  absurd  suggestions  were  seriously 
made  to  me,  but  not  seriously  entertained. 

All  attempts  to  argue  with  me  were  thwarted  as  I  in- 
variably and  good  naturedly  assured  the  parties  at  the 
outset,  that  I  was  ignorant  upon  all  such  matters,  and 
had  made  up  my  mind  to  learn  by  experience.  One  in- 
stance of  this  kind  will  suffice. 

Not  far  from  my  stable  was  a  large  ledge  of  rockS,  in 
the  midst  of  an  ugly,  swampy  piece  of  land.  Of  course, 
such  places,  especially  those  in  the  vicinity  of  my  dwel- 
ling, received  the  earliest  attention.  The  swamp  was 
drained.  The  huge  ledge  was  torn  to  pieces  by  powder, 
and  the  rocks  from  it  were  used  in  building  walls  and  in 
filling  up  the  hollow  where  the  swamp  had  been.  Hun- 
dreds of  loads  of  earth  from  a  near  and  accessible  bank 
were  then  carted  into  it,  and  an  ample  supply  of  muck 
was  spread  over  the  surface  and  well  worked  into  the 
earth.  The  muck  had  previously  been  piled  up  and  dried, 
subject  to  a  winter's  frost,  and  the  spreading  was  done  in 
the  middle  of  summer.  Muck  beds  in  the  vicinity  had 
been  left  undisturbed  by  my  neighbors,  who  enjoyed  many 
a  hearty  laugh  at  the  idea  of  the  "  city  farmer  "  expecting 
to  produce  any  crop  by  any  such  means. 

A  few  gave  their  opinions  concerning  my  methods  un- 
asked, and  in  terms  by  no  means  complimentary.  All 
agreed  that  muck  was  never  so  used  ;  that  it  should  be 
put  into  a  compost  heap,  etc.,  etc.  It  was  in  my  power 
to  turn  upon  them  and  ask  why  their  muck  beds  had 
never  been  put  to  any  such  use,  and  why  they  did  not 


40  FAEM   ECHOES. 

make  compost  heaps,  etc.,  but  I  preferred  to  fall  back 
upon  my  stereotyped  answer  *' You  know  I  am  learning 
by  experience.  Several  persons  have  told  me  just  what 
you  have.  I  have  heard  all  that  you  and  they  have  to 
suggest,  now  I  am  going  to  wait  and  hear  what  the  muck 
has  to  say.     It  shall  speak  for  itself  next  summer." 

Grass  seed  was  sown  in  this  much  abused  ground,  and 
**  took  "  well.  Early  next  spring  I  called  the  attention 
of  one  who  had  most  heartily  enjoyed  my  supposed  blun- 
der, and  who  happened  to  be  passing,  to  the  promising 
prospects  of  the  grass.  "  Oh  !"  said  he,  "  that  is  a  mere 
spurt.  That  will  never  mature.  I  told  you  so  last  sum- 
mer.    It  will  all  die  out,  see  if  it  don't." 

*'  Do  you  really  think  that  such  will  be  the  case  ?  "  I 
asked.  *'How  can  it  go  back  ?"  The  old  laugh  of  half 
pity  and  half  ridicule  was  given,  and  off  went  my  self- 
satisfied,  though  really  much  esteemed,  brother  farmer. 
No  land  on  my  farm  yielded  such  an  abundant  crop  of 
hay  that  summer  as  did  that  once  swampy  and  unsightly 
spot. 

So  mortified  was  the  good  man  to  whom  I  just  referred, 
that  he  came  to  me  a  year  or  two  afterwards,  and  asked 
me  to  please  never  tell  any  one  what  he  had  said,  as  he 
was  thoroughly  ashamed  of  having  made  such  a  mistake, 
f  The  mistake  was  in  treating  all  muck  alike  ;  that  which 
is  cold  and  sour  in  the  samo  way  as  that  which  is  of  a 
totally  different  nature. 

One  field  included  in  my  original  purchase  was  so  un- 
promising, so  absohitely  worn  out  and  exhausted,  that  I 
was  puzzled  to  know  what  to  do  with  it.  It  was  so  covered 
with  mossy  clumps  as  to  drive  out  of  existence  every 


FARM   ECHOES.     "  41 

blade  of  grass.  Again  and  again  I  walked  over  that  deso- 
late field  hoping  to  devise  some  means  to  "  subdue  "  it, 
and  make  it  profitable,  but  each  time  came  to  the  con- 
clusion that  it  was  an  elephant  on  my  hands,  one  that 
had  not  yet  been  mastered.  Though  measuring  about 
nine  and  a  half  acres,  it  was  simply  worthless.  The 
taxes  upon  it  must  be  paid  annually,  and  what  could  I 
do  with  it  ?  Should  I  give  it  away  ?  I  would  be  richer 
without  it  than  with  it.  I  did  not  like  the  idea  of  giv- 
ing away  what  I  had  just  paid  for,  nor  could  I  see  any 
generosity  in  presenting  to  a  neighbor  such  a  piece  of 
property. 

As  I  met  the  more  thrifty  and  successful  farmers,  I 
asked  their  opinions  as  to  what  was  best  to  be  done  with 
that  field.  They  all  knew  it  well,  bub  no  two  gave  the 
same  advice.  This  seemed  very  strange  and  was  the  first 
thing  to  inspire  me  with  confidence  in  my  own  judgment 
in  farming  matters.  Here  were  four  intelligent  farmers, 
all  having  years  of  experience,  and  yet  no  two  of  them 
would  treat  that  field  in  the  same  way  !  What  an  odd 
field  it  would  be,  thought  I,  if  handled  in  all  the  four 
different  ways  recommended. 

After  giving  the  matter  the  requisite  attention,  I  re- 
solved to  branch  out  on  my  own  account.  Something 
must  be  done  and  promptly  done  if  that  wretched  field 
was  to  be  put  into  a  paying  condition. 

The  opinions  of  all  the  four  farmers  were  collected  as 
best  they  could  be,  and  carefully  weighed  in  the  scale  of 
common  sense.  Ideas  were  here  and  there  culled  out  of 
this  confused  mass,  and  coupled  with  some  that  were 
original.     Having  thus  gathered  sufficient  material  to 


42  FABM  ECHOES. 

warrant  ray  doing  so,  I  went  vigorously  to  work,  de- 
termined to  accomplish  what  I  had  undertaken,  whatever 
difficulties  might  present  themselves. 

The  results  proved  a  decided  success.  That  field  has 
each  year  yielded  me  a  handsome  return  for  the  money 
and  labor  expended  upon  it.  Had  1  faltered,  I  do  not 
know  that  I  should  ever  again  have  had  courage  to  attack 
such  an  unpromising  piece  of  ground.  It  does  not  do 
for  a  beginner  to  lack  courage,  even  on  a  farm.  He  must 
have  nerve,  and  plenty  of  it,  for  there  are  few  places  where 
it  will  be  put  to  the  test  as  on  a  farm  properly  conducted. 
There  must  be  no  ''old  feerds"  nor  "young  feerds," 
as  is  shown  in  the  experience  of  the  sea  captain  who, 
after  many  years  of  ocean  travel,  decided  to  give  up  the 
sea,  and  settle  upon  a  farm.  He  took  with  him,  to  his 
farm,  an  old  monkey  he  had  brought  with  him  from  the 
West  Indies,  a  notoriously  mischievous  scamp.  Among 
the  farm  hands  was  a  boy  named  John,  who  had  re- 
peatedly been  complained  of  for  bringing  the  cows  home 
too  late  in  the  evenings.  Finding  that  his  orders  were 
not  obeyed,  the  captain  impressed  upon  John  more 
strongly  than  ever,  that  the  cows  must  bo  got  home  in 
time  to  be  milked  before  dark. 

"John,  ai'nt  you  fcerd  to  come  through  the  woods 
in  the  dark?"  he  asked— "Feerd !  What  is  feerd?" 
inquired  John. — "If  you  don't  know  what  feerd  is,  I 
will  teach  you,  if  you  don't  get  the  cows  home  early 
enough."  John  continued  to  be  late,  and  the  captain, 
fully  resolved  upon  carrying  out  his  threat,  started  from 
the  house  with  a  large  white  sheet.  Arriving  at  the 
woods,  he  took  his  positioa  on  a  stump  at  a  turn  in  the 


FARM   ECHOES.  43 

path,  where  the  boy  would  come  suddenly  upon  him.  As 
John  came  in  sight,  the  captain,  wrapped  in  the  sheet, 
extended  both  arms  full  length,  and  expected  his  boy 
would  make  for  home  full  speed.  John,  however,  stood 
calmly  before  the  mysterious  object,  and,  after  surveying 
it  for  a  while,  as  calmly  exclaimed  :  "  What  can  that  be  ? 
Master  spoke  about  '  feerd,'  I  guess  that  must  be 
'feerd.'  Yes!  That,  I  guess,  is  Old  Feerd,  and  that 
other  by  his  side  must  be  Young  Feerd." 

Hearing  of  another  ''feerd,"  the  captain ~«tole  a  sly 
side  glance  to  his  left,  from  under  the  sheet,  and  was 
surprised  to  find  such  an  object  near  him.  Alarmed 
by  the  apparition,  he  took  to  his  heels  and  was  closely 
followed  by  the  monkey,  who  always  felt  bound  to  do 
just  what  his  master  did,  and,  like  him,  was  robed  in 
white. 

There  is  usually  a  garden,  even  if  only  a  small  one, 
connected  with  a  farm.  Some  country  or  farm  gardens 
that  I  had  seen  before  coming  here,  appeared  to  abound 
in  nothing  but  sun-flowers,  probably  because  there  were 
so  many  of  that  delicate  and  modest-faced  plant  as  to 
keep  the  sun  from  all  the  others,  and  thus  kill  them, 
poor  things  ! 

It  is  well  that  farming  is  not  inseparably  connected 
with  gardening,  for  I  have  no  taste  for  the  latter,  though 
a  decidedly  keen  one  for  the  products  of  a  well-kept 
garden.  Mine  is  a  taste  that  makes  fruits  and  vegetables 
fresh  from  a  garden,  preferable  to  those  that  have  spent 
the  best  portion  of  their  brief  existence  seeking  a  pur- 
chaser, often  not  finding  one  until  over-ripe  old  age. 

When  I  first  came  here  I  was  presented  by  a  friend 


44  FARM   ECHOES. 

with  numerous  valuable  cuttings,  and  felt  in  duty  bound 
to  give  them  my  personal  attention.  They  were  all 
planted  with  the  utmost  care,  perhaps  too  much  of  it, 
for  not  one  of  them  took  root,  so  far  as  could  be  seen. 
It  did  not  occur  to  me  to  ask  the  members  of  the  Chinese 
Embassy,  when  they  honored  me  with  a  visit  a  year  or  two 
ago,  whether  they  had  heard  of,  or  seen,  before  leaving 
China,  any  of  these  cuttings  or  the  results  of  them.  I  had 
planted  them  years  previously  upside  down,  and  if  they 
appeared  anywhere,  it  must  have  been  at  the  antipodes. 

I  am,  certainly,  not  alone  in  my  aversion  to  garden 
exercise,  for  Mr.  Warner's  account  of  his  "  Summer  in  a 
Garden,"  convinces  me  that  he  has  not  spent  a  second 
one  there,  and  never  will.  A  record  kept  one  summer 
showed  that  twenty-four  different  kinds  of  vegetables, 
and  thirteen  varieties  of  fruit,  including  peaches  grown  in 
the  open  air,  were  raised  on  my  premises. 

The  numerous  letters  written  me  after  the  publication 
of  the  proceedings  at  the  meeting  of  the  State  Board  of 
Agriculture,  held  at  New  London,  December,  1877,  at 
which  I  was  unexpectedly  called  upon  to  explain  the  re- 
sults of  my  experiments  in  blasting  with  dynamite,  lead 
me  to  suppose  that  a  repetition  of  my  remarks  will  not 
be  out  of  place  here. 

The  Board  having  been  called  to  order  by  Hon.  E.  H. 
Hyde,  Vice-president,  Mr.  T.  S.  Gold,  the  Secretary,  said  : 
**  I  have  been  unable  to  present  to  the  audience  the  ques- 
tions from  the  question-box  for  lack  of  time,  but  there  is 
one  question  which  I  promised  to  present,  and  as  I  see  a 
gentleman  before  me  who  is  able  to  answer  it,  I  will  read 
it  now. 


FARM   ECHOES.  45 

*'  Has  any  one  present  had  any  experience  with  Dyna- 
mite, or  Giant  Powder,  in  clearing  rocks  from  land  ?  If 
so,  will  he  give  the  result  ? 

"Mr.  Starr,  of  Litchfield,  can  give  us  some  information 
on  that  point." 

Mr.  Starr — *'  I  will  say  that  I  know  but  very  little 
about  this  matter,  except  from  results  as  shown  on  my 
fields.  A  Mr.  Parmelee,  who  makes  it  his  business  to 
blow  up  rocks  with  dynamite,  passed  my  place,  and  I 
asked  him  to  experiment  in  one  of  my  fields,  which  I 
expect  to  clear  next  summer.  There  were  a  large  num- 
ber of  rocks  in  the  field,  such  as  could  not  very  well  be 
blasted  with  powder,  and  I  asked  him  what  he  could  do. 
I  said  :  *  I  want  you  to  experiment,  and  if  you  can  satisfy 
me  I  will  let  you  work  here  for  a  day  or  two.'  I  pointed 
out  a  rock  ten  and  one-half  feet  long,  five  and  one-half 
feet  wide,  and  nine  or  ten  inches  in  depth — such  a  rock, 
as  any  one  will  see,  would  be  difl&cult  to  blast  with  pow- 
der, because  there  is  not  depth  enough  to  drill  into  it.  I 
took  out  my  watch,  and  in  precisely  seven  and  one-half 
minutes  from  the  time  he  began  to  work  the  rock  was  in 
atoms.  I  selected  another  and  larger  rock,  also  a  shallow 
one,  and  he  shattered  it  in  about  the  same  number  of 
minutes.  This  satisfied  me  that  it  would  be  for  my 
interest  to  let  him  work  in  that  field  that  afternoon — ^it 
was  just  at  noon — and  I  was  so  much  pleased  with  the 
result  of  that  day,  that  I  kept  him  at  work  for  two  days 
and  a  half  on  my  farm.  His  charge  was,  I  think,  eighty 
dollars,  which  covered  everything — material,  and  his 
time.  I  have  used  many  kegs  of  gunpowder,  during  my 
six  years'  experience,  in  bla3ting  rocks,  and  am  free  to 


46  PAEM  ECHOES. 

say,  that  the  same  amount  of  work  could  not  have  been 
accomplished  with  ordinary  blasting  powder,  and  the 
same  number  of  men,  in  less  than  a  month.  1  thus 
answer  your  question  as  to  whether  *  it  pays  to  use 
dynamite. '  The  field  was  left  by  Mr.  Parmelee  in  a  de- 
cidedly chaotic  state.  The  rocks  are  so  shattered  and 
crumbled  as  to  give  the  field  the  appearance  of  a  perfect 
wreck.  It  is  well  worth  going  many  miles  to  see.  Though 
the  number  of  rocks  is  many  times  greater  than  before, 
they  are  now  reduced  to  a  size  easily  handled,  and  can 
be  readily  removed. 

"  The  action  of  d3rnamite  is  remarkable.  For  instance, 
one  very  large  rock,  white  quartz,  which  you  know  is 
almost  impossible  to  drill,  was  one  of  the  stones  which 
he  destroyed  on  this  field.  The  first  blast  threw  this 
rock  from  its  bed  to  the  surface,  and  took  oflf  a  small 
piece.  This  rather  disappointed  him,  and  t^e  gentlemen 
who  were  witnessing  his  proceedings.  He  put  a  cartridge 
against  the  side  of  this  rock  above  ground,  secured  it  to 
the  rock  by  two  or  three  shovelfuls  of  mud.  Powder, 
you  know,  would  blow  oH  that  mud,  and  leave  the  rock 
untouched,  but  the  dynamite  has  so  shattered  it  that  I 
can  pick  off  numerous  pieces  with  my  hand.  Some 
pieces  weigh  a  pound,  and  some  five  or  ten  pounds.  It 
is  completely  shattered. 

"The  difference  between  blasting  or  destroying  rocks 
with  powder  and  dynamite,  is  this  :  You  can  make  your 
own  calculations  as  to  the  relative  expense.  In  blasting 
with  powder,  you  drill  the  rock  ;  with  dynamite,  you  drill 
the  ground.  My  rocks  may  be  harder  tlian  other  rocks ; 
they  certainly  are  much  harder  than  my  land.     The  man 


FARM   ECHOES.  47 

makes  a  hole  under  the  rock,  and  all  that  he  wants  is  a 
little  mud  or  water,  to  fill  up  the  hole  after  putting  in  the 
charge.  The  resistance  apparently  amounts  to  nothing, 
so  instantaneous  is  the  discharge  of  this  powerful  agent. 
Powder  must  be  kept  confined,  and  it  works  its  way  out 
at  the  weakest  point ;  but  with  dynamite  the  discharge  is 
so  sudden  and  severe  that  it  shatters  the  rock  to  pieces, 
regardless  of  weak  points.  The  rocks  were  not  thrown 
as  far  as  by  powder.  I  was  so  pleased  with  the  result  of 
the  dynamite  on  this  one  field  that  I  set  the  man  at  work 
on  three  large  rocks  in  another  field,  which  I  had  never 
thought  of  getting  rid  of  with  powder  because  of  their 
size.  My  men  had  dug  trenches  under  those  large  rocks  ; 
in  one  place,  I  suppose,  they  must  have  gone  down  ten  or 
eleven  feet,  so  you  may  judge  of  the  size  of  the  rock. 
The  discharges  were  to  take  place  at  12  o'clock,  noon,  so 
that  persons  who  were  interested  could  come  and  see 
them,  and  there  was  quite  a  crowd  present.  The  dis- 
charges threw  pieces  of  the  rocks  but  a  short  distance, 
but  they  completely  shattered  the  boulders." 

Mr.  Webb — **  Would  the  stone  be  suitable  for  building 
walls?" 

3fr.  Starr — ''A  majority  of  the  stone  would  not  be  fit 
for  building  walls.  The  dynamite  destroys  the  stones  to 
a  much  greater  extent  than  does  powder ;  it  disintegrates 
them.  But  I  have  enough  for  walls,  and  enough  for  the 
ravines,  which  the  great  Master  who  put  the  rocks  on  the 
ground  provided  as  a  receptacle  for  them." 

I  would  caution  all  inexperienced  persons  who  pro- 
pose using  dynamite  not  to  meddle  with  it  themselves, 
but  to  employ  one  who  is  familiar  with  it.     It  is  too  dan- 


48  FARM   ECHOES. 

gerous  to  trifle  with,  though  1  have  held  part  of  a  cart- 
ridge of  it  in  my  hand  while  it  burned  as  a  blue  light 
would  bum. 

The  field  to  which  I  had  reference  is  now  one  of  the 
best,  if  not  the  best,  on  my  farm.  Each  of  the  last  three 
years,  while  at  work  upon  it,  it  has  yielded  about  a  thou- , 
sand  bushels  of  beets  (Golden  Globe  Mangel  Wurzel)  to 
the  acre,  which  reimbursed  me  for  the  amount  expended 
upon  it.  One  year  I  experimented  with  five  different 
kinds  of  beets,  but  though  I  should  prefer  the  red  beet 
on  some  accounts,  I  find  the  Golden  Globe  by  far  the 
most  prolific. 


FAEM  ECHOES.  49 


CHAPTER  VI. 
LEARNING    TO    PLOW. 

A  novice  in  farm  matters,  my  first  impulse  "was  to  learn 
how  to  plow  and  do  other  such  farm  work,  so  as  to  make 
myself  a  thorough  master  of  every  department,  and 
thereby  the  more  effectually  supervise  the  whole. 

My  farm  was  then  only  being  put  in  good  working  order, 
so  that  I  had  none  of  the  more  important  matters  to  look 
after,  which  soon  engrossed  my  personal  attention,  other- 
wise I  should  never  have  touched  a  plow.  Such  labor 
can  be  better,  and  more  economically  performed  by  those 
accustomed  to  it.  Moderate  work  with  his  hands  oc-! 
casionally,  and  any  amount  of  toil  with  his  brains,  bring- 
ing his  business  knowledge  so  to  bear  upon  his  new  en- 
gagements as  to  keep  them  well  and  constantly  in  hand, 
alone  give  promise  of  success  to  him  who  exchanges  city 
life  for  one  on  a  farm  of  large  proportions,  and  requiring 
executive  ability  in  whoever  controls  it. 

No  man  in  his  senses  would  like  to  take  passage  in  a 
vessel,  the  captain  of  which  deemed  it  incumbent  upon 
him  to  labor  at  the  ropes  and  sails  in  common  with  his 
"before  the  mast "  men.  The  safety  of  the  craft,  and  of 
all  on  board  of  her,  and  the  success  of  the  voyage,  depend 
upon  the  executive  officer  rightly  discharging  his  duty. 
Because  he  is  not  seen  running  to  and  fro  with  the  deck 
hands,  it  must  not  be  inferred  that  he  is  a  mere  "figure 
head,"  having  nothing  to  do,     He  has  quite  enough  of 


60 


FAEM  ECHOESi 


his  own  legitimate  work  to  attend  to,  and  if  it  be  faith- 
fully performed,  he  is  the  hardest  worked  man  on  board. 

Brain  work  is  indispensable  to  the  successful  merchant. 
It  will  supply  a  vast  deal  more  manual  labor  than  can  be 
accomplished  by  his  hands.  If  more  laborers  are  needed 
on  his  premises,  it  is  economy  for  him  to  hire  them  rather 
than  to  ape  them,  even  were  he  inclined  to  engage  in  any 
such  pastime. 

By  working  in  their  respective  spheres,  the  employer 


^^■yy^W^^'fe^-^^ 


I,EAUMM-i     lu    l'I.()\N  . 


and  the  employed  each  make  capital  by  and  through  the 
other,  and  thus  mutually  benefit  each  pther. 

The  reader  may  want  to  know  how  I  succeeded  in  my 
first  and  only  attempt  at  plowing,  Everything  being 
ready,  and  not  a  few  lookers-on  to  witness  results,  I  started 
on  a  course  due  south,  at  least  it  shonl4  have  been,  but 


FARM   ECHOES.  51 

it  certainly  was  not.  Though  "due"  there,  I  never 
reached  that  point.  It  was  an  ordinary  plow  I  had,  yet 
it  acted  in  a  most  extraordinary  way,  going  southeast, 
then  southwest.  Indeed  the  oxen  proved  so  stupid  that 
they  could  not  be  made  to  "head"  as  I  ordered  them. 
**  Hard  a  port "  had  no  more  effect  upon  them  than  "  hard 
a  starboard,"  notwithstanding  I  shouted  such  commands 
as  loudly  as  was  possible  without  the  aid  of  a  speaking 
trumpet. 

At  times  they  were  bound  N.  N.  W.,  then  N.  N.  E., 
though  "due"  south,  and  I  began  to  suspect  that  I  was 
driving  a  more  intelligent  team  than  I  had  at  first  sup- 
posed, and  that  the  knowing  creatures,  aware  of  my  fond- 
ness for  sailing,  were  "boxing  the  compass"  for  my. 
gratification.  Their  persistent  disregard  of  all  such 
orders  as  "  Port  your  helm,"  however,  convinced  me  that 
such  was  not  the  case,  but  that  they  were  stupid  or  stub- 
bom.  It  must  be  taken  for  granted  that  the  whole 
difficulty  was  with  them. 

It  was  not  pleasant  to  feel  that  I  had  been  imposed 
upon  in  having  such  stupid  brutes  recommended  to  me, 
and  for  which  I  had  paid  full  price.  How  could  any 
farmer  claiming  to  be  respectable,  thus  defraud  me  ! 

Difficult  as  it  may  be  to  the  reader  to  realize  the  fact, 
it  was  necessary  for  me  to  drop  all  such  explicit  terms  as 
I  had  been  using, — could  any  be  more  explicit  ? — and 
come  down  to  "Haw,"  "Whoa,"  and  "Gee."  I  soon 
found  an  opportunity  to  leave  the  field,  and  handed  the 
plow  to  another,  taking  good  care  not  to  return  to  it. 

It  was  not  through  my  hands  coming  in  contact  with 
the  plow  that  I  was  to  gain  the  requisite  knowledge,  even 


52  FAEM  ECHOES. 

upon  that  branch  of  farm  work.  It  was  through  my 
head,  not  my  hands,  that  I  was  to  acquire  sufficient  ex- 
perience to  enable  me,  at  a  glance,  to  decide  when  the 
plow,  or  other  instrument,  did  its  full  share  of  work,  and 
effectually. 

From  childhood,  I  have  been  an  admirer  of  politeness, 
and  I  was  touched  by  the  courteous  consideration  for  each 
other,  shown  by  four  men  who  were  plowing  on  the  same 
piece  of  ground,  a  thing  that  has  not  been  repeated  since 
that  early  experiment.  Number  one  would  lead  off,  and 
get  well  on  with  his  furrow,  when  it  so  happened  that 
his  whip-lash  needed  attention,  and  he  would  stop  to 
repair  it,  by  giving  it  sundry  turns  and  twists  around  its 
end  of  a  long  limber  twig  or  small  bough — his  "whip 
stalk."  Numbers  two,  three,  and  four,  immediately  fol- 
lowing, were  thus  kept  back,  and — can  you  credit  it  ? — 
not  one  of  them  remonstrated.  All,  most  amiably,  waited 
for  number  one,  without  manifesting  the  slightest  im- 
patience, however  long  detained,  and  though  hired  by  the 
hour  !  Number  one  would  hardly  get  started  again,  when 
the  whip-lash  of  number  two  would  bring  him  to  a  sudden 
stop,  thus  again  detaining  numbers  three  and  four  in  his 
rear,  also  number  one,  who  had  reached  the  end  of  his 
furrow,  and  was  composedly  waiting  for  the  others,  so 
that  he  could  commence  his  return  trip,  and  thus  get 
ready  for  another  repair  of  his  whip-lash.  I  will  not  say 
that  it  never  occurred  to  him  to  make  any  such  repairs, 
while  he  was  waiting  for  his  comrades,  but  I  do  say  that 
he  never  availed  himself  of  any  such  opportunity,  for  any 
such  work.  My  eyes  the  sooner  detected  this  game  be- 
cause my  hands  had  so  early  been  withdrawn  from  the 


FARM   ECHOES.  63 

plow.  My  work  was  essentially  that  of  an  overseer,  or 
general  manager,  not  that  of  plowing,  or  working  with 
any  farm  implement. 

It  made  a  wonderful  difference,  putting  the  four  plows 
into  four  separate  pieces  of  land,  so  that  the  stoppage  of 
any  one,  in  no  way  impeded  the  others.  Even  the  whip- 
lashes showed  the  benefit  of  this  change.  Oxen  that 
dread  the  sight  of  a  whip-lash  have  my  hearty  sympathy. 
They  pay  dearly  for  its  too  free  use  at  times,  especially 
if  the  driver  happens  to  be  in  a  bad  humor,  and  has 
nothing  else  upon  which  he  dare  vent  his  anger.  I  too 
have  paid  dearly  (many  dollars)  for  the  abuse  of  ox 
whip-lashes  by  needless  stops  to  "repair"  them. 

I  have  often  seen  oxen  that  seemed  fully  to  understand, 
and,  be  in  league  with,  their  drivers,  who  were  really 
anything  but  "drivers."  It  was  never  necessary  to  say 
"Whoa"  twice,  in  order  to  halt  them.  It  was  long  ago 
said  that  omnibus  horses  were  the  only  animals  that 
knew  the  luxury  of  "woe,"  but  that  is  certainly  a  mis- 
take and  must  have  been  said  by  some  city  man.  Oxen 
indulge  in  that  luxury  quite  as  heartily  as  do  horses. 
Those  four  pairs  did  at  all  events.  Their  "whoa" 
became  a  woe  to  me  so  great  as  to  be  unbearable. 

I  believe  in  oxen  for  certain  farm  work.  These  noble 
animals,  when  properly  trained,  as  in  some  parts  of  our 
country,  do  a  vast  deal  more  work  than  do  the  imper- 
fectly trained  ones  that  saunter  at  a  snail's  pace,  as  is  too 
generally  the  case.  Such  lazy  brutes  do  not  pay  nearly 
as  well  as  do  the  more  sprightly  ones.  The  inevitable 
consequence  of  their  laziness  is  that  they  make  their 
drivers  equally  lazy.     I  would  not  intentionally  do  oxen 


54  FARM   ECHOES. 

wrong.  It  may  be,  and  it,  doubtless,  frequently  is  the 
case,  that  lazy  drivers  make  lazy  oxen. 

I  often  wonder  if  King  Pharoah  had  to  endure  any 
such  trials.  Though  he  wore  the  crown  of  Egypt,  he 
too  was  a  farmer  or  keeper  of  cattle  ;  and  he  proved  his 
appreciation  of  them  when  he  questioned  Joseph  respect- 
ing his  brothers,  just  arrived  from  the  land  of  Canaan  : 
*'  If  thou  knowest  any  men  of  activity  among  them,  then 
make  them  rulers  over  my  cattle."  As  much  as  to  say  : 
If  there  are  any  lazy  fellows  among  your  brothers,  don't 
let  them  disgrace  my  cattle  by  going  near  them. 

Horses  are  vastly  preferable  to  oxen  on  farms  properly 
cleared.  Their  superiority  is  the  more  apparent  when 
long  distances  have  to  be  travelled  in  drawing  hay,  grain, 
or  any  other  load,  and  in  plowing,  harrowing,  etc. 
That  is,  they  can  be  got  over  the  ground  much  more  ex- 
peditiously. A  person  was  asked  the  length  of  a  fathom, 
and  replied  that  *'it  depended  upon  circumstances." 
**  Circumstances  "  often  determine  the  speed  of  horses  as 
well  as  of  oxen.  If  any  of  my  city  readers  have  not 
learned  this  by  experience,  they  can  easily  do  so.  Let 
them  hire  a  cab  for  the  trip  to  a  certain  part  of  the 
city,  and  then  hire  another,  or  the  same,  by  the  hour. 
If,  in  the  latter  case,  they  do  not  feel  like  putting  their 
heads  out  of  the  cab  window  and  asking  the  driver  whose 
funeral  they  are  attending,  they  will  be  more  highly 
favored  than  most  people. 

I  have  referred  to  the  training  of  oxen.  Horses  are, 
of  course,  differently  handled  ;  sometimes  not  in  the  best 
way,  however,  for  the  trainers,  if  the  story  of  the  sea 
captain  who  turned  farmer,  and  resolved  upon  "subdu- 


FARM   ECHOES. 


55 


ing"  a  runaway  nag  that  had  been  sold  him,  be  true.  He 
took  with  him  a  brother  tar  and  a  kedge  anchor  with  a 
long  stout  rope,  one  end  of  which  was  attached  to  it,  the 
other  end  being  "made  fast"  to  the  hind  axle  of  the 
wagon.  Feeling  secure  with  such  precautions,  he  allowed 
his  horse  to  have  very  much  his  own  way,  but  when  it 


SUBDUING  A  BUNAWAT  HORSE. 


became  evident  that  the  animal  was  having  it  all  its  own 
way,  and  was  off  at  full  speed,  orders  were  given  to  "  Let 
go  the  anchor."  It  was  "let  go,"  and  " held "  so  well 
that  the  result  was  a  too  sudden  stoppage  of  the  wagon. 

I  do  not  know  what  amount  the  Traveller's  Insuranca 
Company  paid  under  this  claim,  btlt  I  take  it  for  granted 
that  the  captain  had  sense  enough  to  make  provision  for 
his  family  by  an  "accident"  policy  in  that  excellent 
institution ! 


56  FARM  ECHOES. 


CHAPTER  VII. 
FAEM    HANDS. 

During  my  summer  visits,  in  former  years,  to  one  of 
our  most  charming  sea-shore  resorts,  I  became  interested 
in  an  eccentric  and  favorite  old  fisherman,  known  to  all 
who  belonged  to,  or  visited  the  place,  as  "  Uncle  Bill," 
and  I  had  many  long  and  amusing  talks  with  him.  The 
old  fellow  would  not  go  to  *'meetin,"  because,  as  he  al- 
leged, they  once  *' talked  agin"  him  there. 

Efforts  were  made  to  take  the  *'meetin"  to  him,  and 
I  at  times  witnessed  some  funny  scenes  at  his  house  on 
Sunday  evenings. 

At  first  there  was  a  sort  of  battledoor  and  shuttlecock 
game,  I  trying  to  improve  my  opportunity,  and  he  cleverly, 
but  not  rudely,  endeavoring  to  defeat  me  in  what  he  well 
understood  to  be  the  object  of  my  visits.  In  the  midst 
of  a  serious  talk  one  Sunday  evening — serious  on  my  side, 
at  least — ^and  when  I  supposed  I  had  the  attention  of  the 
whole  family,  especially  as  he  called  upon  the  "gals"  to 
sing  a  hymn  for  me,  he  suddenly  exclaimed :  "Have  you 
seen  the  fiddle  Len  made  ?  Len,  get  the  fiddle,  and  let 
Mr.  Starr  hear  you  play  it." 

I  was  an  attentive  listener  for  a  time  to  as  good  music 
as  might  be  expected  from  an  old  cigar  box,  of  which  the 
"fiddle"  was  constructed,  and  then  started  the  shuttle- 
cock in  motion  agam.     It  was  sure  to  come  back  to  me 


FARM  ECHOES.  57 

speedily  in  some  shape,  I  well  knew,  but  that  gave  me 
the  opportunity  of  returning  it. 

My  interest  in  the  old  man  increased  as  I  became  better 
acquainted  with  him,  and  much  more  satisfactory  inter- 
views than  those  to  which  I  have  referred,  were  had  with 
him. 

The  poor  fellow  died  the  last  summer  I  was  at  that 
sea-shore  resort,  and  it  has  always  been  a  mystery  and  re- 
gret to  me  that  some  of  the  summer  visitors,  who  for 
years  had  fished  with  him,  did  not  visit  him  in  his  ill- 
ness. Their  neglect  of  duty  stands  out  in  marked  con- 
trast with  that  of  a  New  York  physician,  who  recognized 
the  occasion  as  one  that  warranted  his  laying  aside  pro- 
fessional etiquette,  and  who  most  faithfully  endeavored 
to  restore  the  sick  man  to  health. 

The  name,  "  Uncle  Bill,"  having  become  a  favorite  one 
with  me,  I  gave  it  to  one  of  my  "farm  hands,"  whose 
picture  is  on  the  following  page.  It  is  an  excellent  like- 
ness of  one  who  was  quite  as  original  in  his  way  as  was 
the  fisherman. 

Soon  after  I  assigned  this  name  to  him,  he  said  to  me: 
"I  am  glad  you  call  me  Uncle  Bill."— **  Why  ?"  I  in- 
quired.— "Because  some  of  these  days  some  strangers 
will  be  passing  and  hear  you  call  me  Uncle  Bill,  and  they 
will  think  that  you  are  my  nephew." 

One  day  he  asked  me  why  he  was  like  the  Duke  of 
Devonshire.  Confessing  my  ignorance,  he  informed 
me  :  **  Because  the  Duke  has  his  summer  residence  and 
his  winter  residence,  and  so  have  I."  Pointing  to  the 
farm  house  where  he  lived  in  the  summer,  and  then  to 
my  dwelling,  which  he  took  charge  of  during  my  sojourn 


58 


FABM  ECHOES. 


UNCLE  BILX. 


FAEM  ECHOES.  59 

in  Philadelphia,  he  added  :  "  That  is  my  Chatsworth, 
and  that  is  my  Ardwick  Hall."  He  startled  a  member 
of  my  family  one  day,  who  questioned  him  in  regard  to 
the  disappearance  of  sundry  young  chickens,  by  saying 
that  the  *'ox  had  eaten  them." — '*  Surely  oxen  don't  eat 
chickens,  Uncle  Bill." — "  Oh,  no,  ma'am  ;  not  the  hoxen, 
but,  you  know,  the  ox." — A  further  explanation  revealed 
the  fact  that  the  hawks  had  made  off  with  some  of  my 
poultry. 

Uncle  Bill  looked  and  felt  old.  He  was  an  old  man, 
but  not  in  years.  The  hardships  and  exposures  of 
his  life,  much  of  it  spent  in  deep  coal  mines  in  England, 
had  been  such  as  to  make  him  prematurely  aged.  A 
slight  lameness,  caused  by  an  accident  in  a  coal  pit, 
made  him  appear  the  more  infirm.  It  was  a  source  of  no 
little  gratification  to  him  to  realize  that  he  had  my  fullest 
confidence.  As  a  faithful  watcher  over  the  interests  en- 
trusted to  him,  he  prized  the  title  of  "  My  old  watch 
dog."  Woe  to  those  whom  he  detected  neglecting  duty 
on  the  farm  !  All  such  offenders  were  reproved  by  him  in 
terms  neither  elegant  nor  mild. 

At  one  time,  during  a  severe  illness  which  he  felt  might 
end  in  speedy  death,  he  expressed  a  wish  to  communicate 
something  to  me  alone,  and  in  confidence.  He  sum- 
marily ordered  the  other  occupants  of  his  room  to  leave 
it,  and  I  stood  at  his  bedside  fully  prepared  for  some  im- 
portant revelation — perhaps  a  death-bed  confession  of 
something  as  yet  a  secret  to  all  but  his  God  and  himself. 

Oould  it  be  some  dark  deed  in  his  past  life,  now  weigh- 
ing more  heavily  than  ever  upon  his  conscience,  in  view 
of  the  near  approach  of  death,  and  that  be  longed  to 


60  FAEM  ECHOES. 

unburden  himself  of  it  to  one  from  whom  he  thought  he 
might  receive  comforting  advice  ?  Judge  of  my  surprise 
and  relief,  when  I  found  that  what  he  had  to  communi- 
cate was  the  confession  of  his  neglect  to  inform  me,  at 
the  time  of  its  occurrence  some  year  or  two  previous, 
that  one  in  my  employ  had  left  open  for  a  night,  a  door 
which  ought  to  have  been  locked.  He  found  it  open  early 
the  next  morning,  and  had  ever  since  felt  that  he  had 
neglected  his  duty  in  not  at  once  reporting  the  fact  to  me. 
There  was  a  tone  of  sadness  in  his  voice  which  told,  as 
plainly  as  did  his  words,  his  regret  at  this  failure  of  duty. 
It  was  no  light  matter  to  him  that  I  had  placed  confi- 
dence m  him,  and  that  he  had  seemingly  abused  it. 

I  shall  never  forget  the  impression  this  made  upon  me, 
nor,  I  hope,  the  lesson  it  taught  me.  I  exclaimed : 
**  Happy  Uncle  Bill,  to  be  thus  prepared.  Is  this  all  that 
troubles  you  ?  " 

Here  was  a  soul  about  to  enter  eternity,  as  we  supposed, 
and  it  had  no  greater  burden  resting  upon  it  than  this 
trifling  matter.  To  tell  of  this  open  door,  and  then 
feel  that  he  was  prepared  for  whatever  might  take  place, 
proved  a  childlike  faith  and  trust  rarely  to  be  met  with. 
The  eye  of  faith  was  evidently  looking  upon  another 
**open  door,"  and  so  steadfastly  as  not  to  see  any  of  the 
difficulties  which  distress  those  who  do  not  take  as  liter- 
ally as  did  he,  the  precious  promise  of  a  precious  Saviour  : 
*'  I  am  the  door  :  by  me  if  any  man  enter  in  he  shall  be 
saved."  Why  do  so  many  really  good  people  make  such 
a  tremendous  mistake  as  to  continually  and  morbidly 
dwell  upon  their  "  un worthiness,"  as  though  self  condem- 
nation were  a  preparation  for  Heaven  ?  We  should  go  to 


FAEM   ECHOES.  61 

"  The  Sinner's  Friend,"  because  of  our  sins,  and  with  our 
sins,  and  leave  them  with  Him.  If  He,  as  the  great  sin- 
bearer,  and  sin-pardoner,  relieves  us  of  our  sins,  what  have 
we  to  do  with  them  ?  Thenceforth  we  have  to  do  with 
Christ,  not  with  our  sins.  He  cannot  be  the  bearer  of 
them,  if  we  bear  them,  or  even  attempt  to  share  the 
burden.  There  is  no  such  co-partnership.  There  is 
ample  and  profitable  self-abasement  in  exalting  Him  who 
died  to  redeem  us. 

Our  faith  and  trust  must  ever  be  in  Him  only.  They 
take  *'  the  lowest  place  "  who  reserve  the  highest — not  for 
their  church,  nor  church  forms  or  ceremonies  be  they 
what  they  may  ;  not  for  any  frame  of  mind,  joyous  or 
despondent,  nor  for  emotions  however  devout ;  not  for 
any  vows,  nor  for  any  almsgiving ;  but  for  their  Saviour 
and  their  God. 

"  For  no  foundation  is  there  given 
On  which  I'd  place  my  hopes  of  Heaven, 
But  Christ,  the  comer  stone," 

Uncle  Bill  and  I  had,  on  several  occasions,  conversed 
upon  this  subject,  and  he  had  assured  me  of  his  trust  in 
Christ,  as  the  only  and  all-sufficient  Saviour.  These  as- 
surances, made  when  he  was  in  comparative  health,  were 
now  verified  at  the  supposed  dying  hour.  His  was  a 
"steadfast"  faith — "Both  sure  and  steadfast."  This 
good  man  never  wholly  recovered  from  this  illness,  though 
he  lingered  along  the  journey  of  life  a  while  longer. 

On  his  tombstone  is  engraved  : 

"Honest,  Faithful,  Trustful." 

I  doubt  if  there  ever  were  a  better  set  of  men — a  more 


G2  FAEM   ECHOES. 

faithful  and  industrious  set  than  are  to  be  found  on  this 
farm.  They  have  been  selected  after  years  of  culling  out. 
Such  as  labored  so  vigorously  in  my  presence  that  they 
had  to  rest  the  moment  my  back  was  turned,  have  been 
allowed  to  rest,  but  not  at  my  expense. 

All  are  made  to  understand,  when  engaged,  that  I  have 
no  limited  hours  in  which  they  are  to  work,  but  that  they 
must  work  whenever  needed,  night  or  day,  and  I  do  not 
know  of  one  who  would  not  most  readily  respond  to  a 
call  at  any  time  during  the  twenty-four  hours,  or  all  the 
twenty-four,  if  necessary.  Regular  hours  are,  as  a  gen- 
eral rule,  rigidly  enforced.  When  not  absolutely  needed, 
the  men  have  their  stated  hour  for  breakfast  and  dinner. 
Their  services  are  dispensed  with  as  early  in  the  evening 
as  possible.  They  literally  go  by  "clock-work,"  but  as 
the  bam  clock  ticks  with  equal  vigor  all  through  the 
twenty-four  hours,  so  they  stand  ready  to  do  service 
whenever  special  duties  are  to  be  discharged. 

The  term  **Farm  hands"  is  used  only  because  it  is 
one  commonly  understood,  for  I  do  not  like  it.  I  could 
not  be  content  with  the  mere  mechanical  labor  of  the 
men's  ** hands."  I  must  have  their  hearty  interest  and 
co-operation,  and  that  is  secured  by  so  treating  them  as 
to  prove  that  such  feelings  are  reciprocal.  It  has  often 
been  remarked  by  farmers  that  they  cannot  get  **  farm 
hands"  to  work  for  them  as  industriously  as  do  mine. 
Strangers  visiting  the  farm  have  often  told  me  the  same 
thing,  and  I  have  been  asked  to  explain  how  I  secured 
such  services.  There  need  be  no  secret  about  it.  If  men 
arc  properly  treated  by  those  who  employ  them,  whether 
it  be  on  a  farm  or  elsewhere,  they  will,  as  a  general  rule, 


FARM   ECHOES.  63 

properly  treat  their  employers.  If  laborers  are  treated 
as  mere  animals,  capable  of  doing  a  certain  amount  of 
work,  what  right  has  the  employer  to  find  fault  if  they 
act  as  such?  He  may,  in  disgust,  call  them  "brutes," 
but  did  he  not  hire  them  as  such,  and  has  he  not,  to  some 
extent,  made  them  what  they  are  ?  He  Vho  drives  hard 
bargains  with  those  in  his  employ,  and  proves  a  hard 
master  in  his  treatment  of  them  while  in  his  service,  must 
expect  to  reap  as  he  has  sown.  Some  excellent  christian 
men  appear  to  be  totally  unmindful  of  the  duty  they  owe 
to  those  in  their  employ.  It  should  not  be  a  mere  mat- 
ter of  dollars  and  cents.  Though  if  it  were  only  such, 
it  pays  vastly  better  to  secure  the  hearty  sympathy  of 
those  working  for  us,  rather  than  have  them  heartlessly 
and  grudgingly  do  as  little  as  they  possibly  can — for  their 
pay,  not  for  us. 

I  hope  there  are  but  few,  if  any,  merchants  who  would 
deduct  from  the  salaries  of  their  clerks  the  time  spent  in 
vacation,  or  lost  by  sickness  ;  yet  how  many  keep  a  rigid 
account  of  the  moments  a  laborer  may  be  off  duty.  Has 
not  the  laborer  an  equal  right  to  deny  to  his  employer  a 
moment's  more  work  than  he  is  compelled  to  give  ?  I 
think  so. 

Generous  and  kind  treatment  on  the  part  of  the  em- 
ployer, begets  like  generosity  and  kindness  on  the  part  of 
ths  employed,  and  only  thus  can  capital  and  labor  har- 
monize. 

There  is  a  debit  and  credit  side  to  this  account.  The 
employer  and  the  employed  must  each  give  to  the  other 
ft  quid  pro  quo. 

One  winter  afternoon,  in  Philadelphia,  several  years 


64  FABM   ECHOES. 

ago,  I  was  asked  for  a  penny  by  some  little  girls  who 
were  sweeping  the  falling  snow  from  the  street  crossings. 
A  bright  and  mischievous-looking  lad,  who  was  evidently 
having  some  fun  at  their  expense,  ran  in  front  of  me,  and 
extending  his  hand,  said  in  a  most  beseeching  and  pite- 
ous tone :  *'  Please  give  me  a  penny,  sir — for  doing 
nofl&n."  It  has  always  been  a  source  of  regret  to  me 
that  I  did  not  ascertain  that  youngster's  name  and  ad- 
dress, and  try  to  make  something  of  him,  for  there  cer- 
tainly was  material  in  him  to  work  upon  with  fair  pros- 
pects of  success. 

I  enjoyed  the  sport  of  that  little  boy,  but  there  is  no 
enjoyment  in  employing  those  whose  indolence  prompts 
them  to  do  "noffin"  more  than  they  can  possibly  help. 
We  are  all  busy  here ;  those  regularly  in  my  employ,  and 
such  as  are  hired  by  the  day  or  hour. 

On  one  occasion  the  owner  of  an  excellent  ox-team  and 
cart  was  engaged  to  help  get  in  my  hay.  At  the  end  of 
the  third  day  he  respectfully  informed  me  that  he  would 
not  be  able  to  work  for  me  any  longer,  as  he  must  cut 
and  house  his  own  hay.  His  team  had  been  sandwiched 
in  between  two  of  my  own,  so  that  each  did  its  equal 
share  of  work,  which  proved  too  much  for  him,  for  he 
assured  his  friends  that  "  if  any  one  says  that  the  men 
■  on  Starr's  farm  don't  have  to  work  hard,  they  lie."  My 
regulars  were  not  a  little  amused  at  this  outburst  of  a 
volunteer. 

Profanity  and  intemperance  have  ever  been  prohibited 
on  this  farm,  as  senseless  and  degrading.  Oaths  are 
never  heard  on  the  farm,  except  when  uttered  by  some 
stranger,  who  is  politely  informed  that  he  is  speaking  in 


FAEM  ECHOES.  65 

a  ''foreign  language,  not  understood  or  allowed  here." 
There  was  some  "tall  swearing"  when  I  first  came 
here,  and  I  had  frequently  to  draw  swords  with  such 
offenders. 

On  one  occasion  a  teamster  in  "dumping"  a  load  of 
stones,  savagely  ordered  them  to  "the  bad  place,"  be- 
cause one  of  them  struck  his  foot.  I  was  passing  along 
the  road  at  the  time,  on  my  way  to  that  field,  but  was 
not  seen  by  the  men  until  I  entered  it.  When  the  team- 
ster was  ready  to  discharge  his  next  load  of  stones,  I  was 
on  the  spot,  and  greatly  astonished  him  and  the  other 
men,  by  feeling  a  number  of  stones,  and  expressing  sur- 
prise at  finding  them  all  "  quite  cold,  and  just  like  other 
stones."  "What  does  Mr.  Starr  mean  ?"  was  asked  by 
several.  More  stones  were  felt  and  commented  upon  in 
like  manner.  It  was  not  long  before  one  of  the  men 
comprehended  my  meaning,  and  enlightened  the  others. 

"The  stones  had  been  sent  to and  were  not  hot." 

Having  thus  secured  the  attention  of  all  the  men,  I  en- 
deavored to  prove  the  folly  that  had  been  committed. 
No  damage  had  been  done  to  the  stones.  They  were  just 
as  they  were  before  being  cursed,  but  not  so  the  guilty 
one  who  cursed  them.  He  could  not  harm  a  lifeless 
stone,  but  he  could  and  had  harmed  his  ever  living  soul. 
Some  friendly  advice  was  given  and  respectfully  refteived. 
The  offender  would  not  promise  never  again  to  utter  an 
oath,  but  he  most  heartily  assured  me  that  he  would 
"  try  hard  never  to  swear  again,"  and  it  is  my  belief  that 
he  has  tried  hard  enough  to  succeed.  There  is  a  good 
deal  that  is  manly  about  him,  and  he  is  likely  to  accom- 
plish whatever  he  undertakes. 


66  FAEM   ECHOES. 

What  can  be  more  ridiculous  than  profane  language  ? 
I  never  hear  it  without  thinking  of  the  little  boy  who 
hud  been  provoked  by  something,  and  in  revenge  told 
his  mother  that  he  would  teach  his  little  sister  "to  say 
some  bad  words."  When  asked  by  his  mamma  what  the 
bad  words  were,  he  replied  :  ' '  Dandy  Jim  and  Daddy- 
long-legs." 

If  those  addicted  to  this  low  vice  must  have  some 
strong  adjectives  to  give  spice  and  power  to  their  sayings, 
perhaps  too  tame  without  them,  why  not  ** hallow" 
their  Maker's  name  by  keeping  it  for  only  sacred  use, 
and,  in  lieu  thereof,  take  up  such  impressive  and  digni- 
fied words  as  those  quoted  by  that  little  boy,  now  a  noble 
christian  gentleman,  or  others  equally  forcible  and  grand, 
such  as  ''gingerbread and  molasses,"  "shovel  and  tongs," 
etc.,  etc. 

Though  for  many  years  an  abstainer  from  intoxicating 
drinks,  I  have  never  sympathized  with  those  ultra  ones 
who  denounce  all  who  do  not  agree  with  them  upon  the 
important  question  of  total  abstinence.  I  grant  to  all 
the  right  I  claim  for  myself — freedom  of  thought  and 
action.  True,  there  are  many  who  drink  in  moderation; 
excellent  christian  people  ;  but  it  is  equally  true  that 
there  are  many  so  under  the  dominion  of  alcohol  as  to  be 
wholly  unable  to  use  it  in  moderation.  Their  only  safety 
is  in  abstaining  from  all  intoxicating  liquors.  To  en- 
courage such,  and  to  disprove  the  too  often  repeated  as- 
sertion that  "  only  reformed  drunkards  sign  the  total 
abstinence  pledge,"  are  sufficient  inducements  to  enlist 
in  the  good  cause  those  who  are  willing  to  come  to  the 
rescue  of  these  less  favored  ones. 


FAEM   ECHOES.  67 

If  what  are  called  "rectified  spirits"  would  only 
*'  rectify  "  those  who  partake  of  them  too  freely,  I  should 
at  once  cease  to  be  a  total  abstinence  man.  Do  what  we 
may,  we  can  accomplish  but  little  for  others,  as  compared 
with  what  has  boon  done  for  us  by  the  good  Master 
above  ;  and  the  more  we  deny  ourselves  for  the  sake  of 
others,  the  more  closely  we  shall  resemble  Him,  and  the 
more  obedient  shall  we  be  to  His  command  to  follow 
Him. 

As  to  the  men  on  Echo  Farm,  I  tell  all  before  engag- 
ing them  that  they  are  free  to  act  as  they  wish  ;  that  they 
can  drown  their  bodies  and  souls  in  liquor  if  they  prefer 
to  do  so,  and  are  prepared  to  take  the  consequences,  but 
that  I  am  equally  free  to  do  as  I  wish,  and  that  no 
drunkard  will  be  employed  by  mc. 

None  of  my  men  are  required  to  sign  any  total  absti- 
nence pledge,  though  I  am  glad  to  say  that  several  have 
voluntarily  done  so.  They  know  full  well  that  it  is  per- 
fectly useless  to  come  to  me  with  any  excuses,  however 
plausible,  if  found  guilty  of  having  imbibed  too  freely. 
Not  even  the  plea  that  they  had  "  taken  a  little  whiskey 
to  keep  their  feet  dry,  the  roads  were  so  wet,"  could 
satisfy  me  that  a  pair  of  water-proof  boots  would  not 
have  answered  the  purpose  quite  as  well.  We  understand 
each  other  now,  and  it  is  due  to  all  of  them  to  say  that 
they  are  temperate,  though  not  all  total  abstinence  men. 
I  not  only  refuse  to  employ  drunken  men,  but  will  not 
purchase  drunken  cows.  I  once  sent  a  trustworthy  per- 
son to  examine  a  valuable  cow  that  had  been  offered  me 
for  sale.  The  report  of  her  was  highly  favorable,  with 
this  one  important  exception  :  she  was  found  "almost 


68  FARM   ECHOES. 

dead  drunk."  The  poor  creature  had  eaten  too  freely 
of  apples  that  had  been  lying  in  a  pile  for  several 
weeks,  and  fermented,  and  she  was  too  much  "over- 
come "  to  stand  up.  A  mixture  of  cider  and  milk  does 
not  seem  very  tempting. 


CHAPTER     VIII. 
FAEM   ANIMALS. 

Before  referring  to  the  more  useful  animals  of  the 
farm,  allow  me  to  introduce  to  the  reader,  if  not  the 
most  ornamental,  certainly  the  most  amusing  creature  I 
ever  owned. 

At  the  time  I  purchased  my  country  residence,  a  little 
nephew  of  mine  was  promised  a  pet  lamb  to  play  with 
when  he  visited  me  the  following  spring.  Shortly  before 
the  lad's  visit,  I  made  inquiry  for  such  an  animal.  One 
of  my  men  informed  me  that  he  knew  where  one  was  to 
be  had,  and  he  was  accordingly  sent  to  purchase  it.  "We 
were  all  greatly  astonished  and  amused  to  see — not  a 
spotless,  snow-white  lamb,  such  as  we  had  pictured  in 
our  imagination,  but  the  most  coal-black  and  impish- 
looking  creature  I  ever  beheld.  A  wether  lamb  whose 
diminutive  size,  for  it  was  quite  young  and  small,  made 
it  appear  the  more  ridiculous  as  we  took  our  first  look  at 
it,  by  the  aid  of  a  lantern  at  night.  His  antics,  that 
first  night,  gave  promise  of  amusement,  and  never  was 


FARM  ECHOES.  69 

a  promise  better  kept.  He  became  a  great  pet,  and 
contributed  largely  to  the  merriment,  or  fear,  of  those 
who  made  his  acquaintance.  Whether  merriment  or 
fear  predominated  depended  very  much  upon  the  hilarity 
of  the  lamb,  and  his  mode  of  showing  it.  He  was  ap- 
propriately named  *'  Daisy." 

The  lad  for  whose  special  benefit  the  lamb  had  been 
procured,  had  a  full  measure  of  sport  with  him  the  first 
summer,  but  it  afterwards  became  apparent  that  too 
great  familiarity  was  dangerous,  for  it  was  clear  that 

Willie  had  a  little  lamb, 

His  fleece  as  black  as  jet, 
And  if  too  near  him  Willie  went, 

He  was  sure  to  be  upset. 

This  was  nothing  to  the  discredit  of  the  boy,  for  some 
gentlemen  whose  bravery  upon  the  battle  field  had  never 
been  questioned,  eagerly  sought  refuge  behind  a  fence, 
when  they  saw  Daisy  making  for  them.  However  nimbly 
they  vaulted  over  walls,  Daisy  was  much  more  nimble 
than  they,  and  was  "  over "  about  as  soon  as  any  of 
them.  Leaping  walls  was  one  of  Daisy's  delights.  Un- 
like politicians  and  cats,  he  was  never  on  the  fence,  but 
took  a  decided  stand  one  side  or  the  other. 

I  am  sorry  to  say  Daisy  was  a  **  black  sheep  "  in  charac- 
ter, for  he  became  a  noted  thief,  so  expert  in  picking  the 
pockets  of  the  men,  as  to  make  it  unsafe  to  leave  a  coat 
or  vest  within  his  reach.  His  fondness  for  tobacco  must 
have  originated  with  the  men,  who  probably  gave  him 
some  to  see  what  he  would  do  with  it.  If  they  were  the 
guilty  ones,  they  paid  well  for  thus  training  him,  as  he 
helped  himself  freely,  at  their  expense,  whenever  an  op- 


70 


FARM  ECHOSS. 


portunity  offered.  Knowing  where  and  how  to  get  it, 
he  would  search  the  coats  and  vests  laid  aside  by  the  men 
while  working  in  the  fields.  One  day,  while  surrounded 
by  a  large  force  of  men,  clearing  the  field,  I  heard  the 
shout  :  "Daisy  is  at  the  coats  !"  Looking  up,  I  saw  his 
head  buried  in  the  pile  of  coats  upon  a  ledge  of  rocks 
near  me,  and  ran  to  drive  him  off.     When  close  by  him 


«//«■•>* 


he  raised  his  head  as  high  as  he  could,  holding  in  his 
mouth  one  end  of  a  watch  chain,  the  watch  dangling 
from  the  other  end.  The  rousing  laugh  of  the  men  in- 
creased as  the  mischievous  creature  shook  his  head,  sway- 
ing the  watch  backward  and  forward,  so  close  to  the 
rocks  that  I  made  up  my  mind  that  I  should  have  to 
provide  the  owner  of  it  with  another.  Daisy  appeared 
conscious  that  he  was  doing  a  smart  thing,  and  kept  up 
the  swaying  motion,  until  I  took  the  watch  uninjured 
from  him. 


FARM   ECHOES.  71 

A  tew  days  after  this  Daisy  again  made  himself  con- 
spicuous, and  in  the  same  place.  The  old  cry  *'  Daisy  is 
at  the  coats  "  drew  the  attention  of  every  one  in  the  field 
to  him.  His  head  was  again  huried  in  the  pile  of  clothes. 
Eemembering  the  watch,  I  made  all  haste  for  him,  and 
was  convulsed  with  laughter  as  I  saw  him  draw  his  head 
from  the  pocket  of  one  of  the  coats,  holding  in  his  mouth 
a  tobacco  pipe.  The  pipe  happened  to  be  bowl  upper- 
most, and  in  the  comer  of  his  mouth,  giving  the  wretch 
the  air  of  an  accomplished  smoker.  The  roar  of  laughter, 
from  all  hands,  exceeded  that  of  the  previous  occasion, 
and  Daisy  certainly  appeared  to  enjoy  the  sport,  for  he 
stood  motionless,  head  erect.  There  was  no  occasion  for 
a  rush  at  him,  as  when  he  was  playing  with  the  watch, 
so  that  I  let  him  have  his  own  way  for  a  few  minutes. 
He  allowed  me  to  take  the  pipe  out  of  his  mouth,  though 
he  was  undoubtedly  luxuriating  in  the  taste  of  tobacco. 

So  much  has  been  written  concerning  the  relative  merits 
of  the  different  breeds  of  cattle  that  there  is  no  need  for 
me  to  give  more  than  a  general  account  of  those  that 
compose  my  herd,  especially  as  these  remarks  are  merely 
"  echoes  "  from  my  farm. 

If  I  purchase  a  yacht,  it  is  presumed  that  I  want  her 
for  voyaging  on  the  water.  If  I  buy  a  carriage,  it  is  for 
land  travel.  So  it  is  in  regard  to  cattle.  I  buy  what  I 
deem  most  suited  to  the  purposes  for  which  they  are  in- 
tended. For  just  this  reason  owners  of  Shorthorns,  Dev- 
ons.  Jerseys,  Guernseys,  and  Ayrshires,  etc.,  have  made 
their  selection.  If  animals  are  wanted  for  beef  only,  as  in 
certain  parts  of  our  country,  the  larger  they  are  the  better, 
if  equally  good  in  other  respects.      If  for  quantity  of 


72  FAEM  ECHOES. 

milk,  regardless  of  its  quality,  another  breed  may  be 
chosen,  though  some  of  my  Jerseys  give  twenty  quarts  of 
rich  milk  per  day.  If  for  richness  of  milk,  richness  of 
butter,  and  richness  of  meat  when  butchered,  I  know  of 
none  that  can  equal  the  best  class  of  Jerseys.  I  do  not 
mean  the  pretty  little  creatures  so  often  purchased,  and 
at  large  prices,  merely  for  their  beauty,  but  the  full  size, 
Americanized  cows,  born  and  brought  up  in  this  country, 
and  which  seem  to  me  far  handsomer  than  the  toy  cattle 
sometimes  seen  on  fancy  farms. 

Large  sums  are  frequently  paid  for  a  painting  of  a  hand- 
some cow,  perhaps  many  times  the  value  of  the  original. 
The  purchaser  sees  his  money's  worth  on  the  canvas,  and 
gladly  rewards  the  clever  artist.  A  few  years  ago,  I 
greatly  enjoyed  looking  at  a  large  exhibition  of  valuable 
paintings  imported  from  Europe.  Among  them  was  one 
of  a  few  sheep  so  admirably  executed  that  you  could  al- 
most imagine  them  to  be  clothed  in  real  wool.  Some 
farmers  who  saw  this  picture  inquired  the  price.  Upon 
being  informed  that  it  was  two  thousand  dollars,  they 
expressed  surprise,  and  could  not  be  convinced  that  it 
was  worth  so  much  money,  though  told  by  its  owner  that 
"  there  was  two  thousand  dollars'  worth  of  wool  alone  in 
the  picture." 

While  alluding  to  the  different  breeds  of  cattle,  it  will 
not  be  out  of  place  to  acknowledge  my  ignorance  of  any 
such  breed  as  was  referred  to  by  the  clergyman  who,  in 
dwelling  upon  the  Prodigal  Son,  became  much  excited 
over  the  young  man's  happy  return  to  his  home,  and 
pictured  in  graphic  terms,  the  "  fatted  calf  "  which  he 
aszured  his  hearers  the  fond  father  had  been  fattening  for 


FARM   ECHOES. 


73 


74  FAKM  ECHOES. 

maay  years  in  anticipation  of  the  joyous  event  then 
celebrated.  Calves,  nowadays,  cease  to  be  such  when 
they  become  yearhngs. 

A  school  commissioner  asked  the  scholars  during  an 
oflScial  visit,  "What  is  Kentucky  famous  for,"  and  was 
answered  "For  its  mammoth  calves." 

My  herd  consists  of  over  one  hundred  and  ninety  Jer- 
seys, and  two  superior  prize  cows  of  the  Ayrshire  breed 
with  which  I  am  experimenting  in  order  to  test  their 
value  as  compared  with  Jerseys.  "  Litchfield "  still 
proudly  heads  the  herd,  and  is  the  admiration  of  all  who 
see  him.  He  appears  to  as  great  advantage  as  when  he 
stood  the  severe  test  at  the  Centennial  Exhibition  at  Phil- 
adelphia, where  he  won  the  Centennial  award,  also  the 
special  first  prize  offered  by  the  American  Jersey  Cattle 
Club  for  the  best  Jersey  bull.  For  quite  a  number  of 
years  excellent  judges  of  cattle  have  been  making  ex- 
tensive selections  of  the  best  to  be  found  on  the  Island 
of  Jersey,  and  it  stands  to  reason  that  this  must  long  ago 
have  drawn  from  that  charming  little  Island  their  choicest 
animals,  and  that  this  country  has  now  the  best  stock  of 
that  breed,  as  of  others.  Such  long  continued  taking  out 
of  the  one  scale,  and  putting  into  the  other,  must  surely 
have  "tipped  the  beam  "  ere  this. 

I  read,  and  hear,  much  that  is  absurd  in  regard  to 
"points"  in  Jerseys,  and  long  ago  made  up  my  mind 
that  my  schoolmaster  was  very  remiss  in  not  teaching  me 
how  to  spell  that  simple  word.  I  spell  it  "pints,"  and 
am  fully  convinced  tliat  the  chief  "  point "  of  a  cow  is  the 
number  of  pints  she  jields,  unless  she  is  wanted  for  other 
than  milking  purposes.    There  are,  of  course,  certain 


FABM   ECHOES.  75 

distinctive  marks  which  it  is  important  to  note.  My 
schoolmaster  was  also  at  fault  in  demonstrating  to  me, 
as  he  did  occasionally  and  conclusively,  that  one  rod 
made  an  acre,  whereas  I  have  since  discovered  that  it  takes 
V  forty.  Happily  for  me  he  did  not  know  this.  One  was 
quite  enough. 

As  to  "solid  color,"  about  which  so  much  is  said  and 
written,  and  upon  which  many  put  so  much  stress,  it  can- 
not amount  to  more  than  mere  outward  appearance,  for 
surely  milk  does  not  come  from  colored  hair,  nor  flow 
more  profusely  from  one  color  than  from  another.  It  is 
very  natural  to  have  a  preference  for  color,  and  I  fully 
a^ree  Avith  those  who  would  rather  have  a  solid  fawn- 
colored  cow,  than  one  of  any  other  shade,  all  other 
things,  points  and  pints,  being  equal ;  yet  I  think  a  large 
herd  of  different  colored  cows,  say  solid  fawn,  fawn  and 
white,  squirrel  gray,  and  gray  and  white,  is  a  handsomer 
sight  than  would  be  a  herd  all  of  the  same  color,  what- 
ever that  might  be. 

This  question  of  color  is  purely  one  of  fancy.  People 
have  differed  upon  much  more  important  *'  points  "  than 
it,  and,  far  back  into  the  past,  if  the  statement  of  the 
"  colored  "  brother  be  correct,  that  the  people  before  the 
flood  were  divided  into  two  classes — "  the  diluvians,  who 
were  in  favor  of  the  flood,  and  the  anti-diluvians,  who 
were  opposed  to  it. "  The  reply  made  by  one  who  repre- 
sented his  cow  as  ''nearly  solid  color,  so  nearly  so  that 
but  for  a  few  dark  hairs  she  would  be  all  white,"  was  an 
excellent  burlesque  upon  the  rage  for  "  eolid  color." 

It  is  a  great  mistake  to  overfeed  cows.  The  tempta- 
tion to  do  so,  in  order  to  make  them  give  a  large  yield  of 


76  FAEM   ECHOES. 

milk,  is  very  great.  Such  a  course  may  secure  the  desired 
object  for  a  time,  but  the  evil  effects  are  sure  to  present 
themselves  before  long.  It  is  safest,  and  certainly  most 
profitable,  to  feed  moderately,  and  thus  secure  the  health 
of  the  animals  and  of  their  progeny. 

"Silos,"  "Ensilage,"  are  echoed  from  various  parts' 
of  the  country,  and  astonish  us  with  their  new  and  mar- 
vellous stories.  If  we  throw  overboard  one-half  of  what 
is  said  in  their  praise,  enough  is  left  to  deepen  the  interest 
they  have  already  created.  While  some  are  rushing 
wildly  into  an  undeveloped  theory,  others  are  calmly  and 
judiciously  exploring  its  mysteries,  and  the  results  of 
their  investigations  will  determine  one  of  the  most  im- 
portant questions  that  has  ever  arisen  regarding  agricul- 
tural products. 

I  do  not  question  the  excellence  of  the  artificial  food 
given  to  cows  and  other  animals,  as  I  do  not,  and  cannot, 
know  all  about  it.  Because  of  the  impossibility  of  know- 
ing all  about  it,  as  I  know  all  about  the  grasses,  grains 
and  beets  I  give  my  pets,  I  refuse  to  use  any. 

Sometimes,  in  travelling,  I  have  been  inclined  to  suspect 
that  hotel  men  were  feeding  me  on  artificial  food,  it  was 
so  awfully  tough.  If  the  art  of  making  roast-beef  and 
beef-steak  out  of  gutta-percha  has  been  discovered,  I 
shall  be  inclined  to  suspect  that  I  have  been  thus  victim- 
ized. So  long  as  I  protect  my  herd,  it  shall  not  be 
troubled  in  any  such  way.  That  I  may  not  be  accused  of 
being  too  particular,  I  acknowledge  that  the  best  of  every- 
thing is  good  enough  for  my  animals,  though  none  too 
good.  Dwelling  upon  this  subject  I  am  reminded  of  the 
unfortunate  fellow  who  had  been  advised  by  his  doctor 


FARM  ECHOES.  77 

to  eat  "animal  food."  When  asked  by  the  physician 
how  he  liked  the  diet,  he  replied  that  he  could  get 
along  very  well  with  the  beets  and  carrots,  but  that,  do 
his  best,  he  could  not  swallow  the  cut  feed.  For  the 
benefit  of  the  uninitiated,  it  may  be  well  to  explain  that 
**  cut  feed  "  is  hay  cut  short,  say  about  an  inch  in  length, 
and  mixed  with  grain — oats  and  corn  ground  together — 
and  frequently  bran.  A  little  water  is  usually  put  with 
it.  Doubtless  much  of  the  manufactured  food  for  cattle 
is  pure,  but  as  there  is  great  danger  of  adulteration,  and 
quite  as  great  difficulty  in  detecting  it  without  a  thorough 
analysis,  which  cannot  well  be  made  by  farmers,  too 
much  care  cannot  be  taken  in  guarding  against  such  im- 
position. 

"  Experiment  Stations,"  springing  up  in  different  parts 
of  our  country,  have  already  accomplished  much  good, 
and,  if  rightly  conducted,  will  prove  of  incalculable  value 
in  stock  farming,  as  well  as  in  every  other  branch  of 
agriculture. 

Those  whose  chief  object  is  to  get  cheap  food,  or  cheap 
anything  else,  without  having  due  regard  to  its  excellence, 
expose  themselves  to  fraud,  and — ^perhaps  unconsciously 
— tempt  the  manufacturers  to  adulterate  in  order  that 
they  may  make  the  required  reduction  in  price.  The 
best  is  generally  the  cheapest,  and  should  invariably  be 
sought. 

Dr.  Albert  R.  Ledoux,  says  the  *'  N.  Y.  Observer,"  in 
"  addressing  the  National  Agricultural  Society  upon  the 
subject  of  mixed  and  manufactured  seeds,  stated  that 
Professor  Nobbe,  of  Germany,  had  made  a  thorough  ex- 
amination of   the  stock  of  prominent  European  seed- 


78  FAEM  ECHOES. 

dealers,  and  the  investigation  revealed  the  following 
facts  :  The  average  per  cent,  of  pure  seed  in  commercial 
samples  was  fif tj-nine.  Of  this  fifty-nine  per  cent. ,  only 
eighteen  per  cent,  was  capable  of  germinating.  One 
sample  of  orchard  grass  contained  the  seeds  of  forty-five 
other  plants.  Another  contained  ninety-five  per  cent, 
of  dead  seed.  Three  tons  of  seed  sold  as  red  clover  con- 
tained two  tons  of  yellow  clover.  Old  seeds  were  reno- 
vated by  boiling,  dyeing,  roasting.  Weed  seeds  were 
stained  and  used  to  adulterate  lots  of  expensive  seeds. 
He  discovered  that  in  Bohemia  and  elsewhere  large  fac- 
tories for  the  manufacture  of  seeds  were  running,  with 
warehouses  at  Hamburg  and  other  commercial  centers. 
*'  No  one  unsuspecting  would  detect  this  adulteration 
even  if  practised  to  the  extent  of  twenty-five  per  cent. 
In  Bavaria  and  Austria  women  and  children  were  em- 
ployed to  gather  weed  seeds  from  the  roadsides  and 
ditches,  which  were  shipped  to  England,  sorted  and  sold 
as  grass  seeds.  American  seeds  were  also  examined,  and 
with  results  almost  equally  astonishing.  For  instance  :  A 
sample  of  red  clover  seed  contained  no  less  than  fourteen 
thousand  four  hundred  foreign  seeds  in  a  pound.  These 
foreign  seeds  were  of  forty-four  distinct  species,  among 
them  thistle,  sorrel,  milkweed,  dandelion,  knot-weed, 
burdock,  darnel,  goose  grass,  blue  weed,  wild  carrot,  ox- 
eye  daisy,  pig-weed,  chick-weed,  and  dodder.  The  sam- 
ples of  American  seeds,  however,  for  the  most  part  bore 
favorable  comparison  with  the  European  specimens. 
Summing  up  the  results  of  his  investigations.  Professor 
Nobbe  said  that  American  grasses  contain,  on  the  average, 
seventy-nine  per  cent,  of  pure  seeds,  while  the  average  in 


FARM  ECHOES.  79 

Germany  is  only  sixty-two.  The  average  per  cent,  of 
grass  seed  capable  of  germinating  is  in  the  United  States 
fifty,  in  Germany  forty-two.  The  average  percentage  of 
pure  seeds  in  American  clover  is  ninety-three,  in  Germany 
ninety-four :  clover  seed  capable  of  germinating,  in 
America  fifty,  Germany  forty-two  per  cent.  The  moral 
of  all  which  is  :  "  Buy  your  seeds  of  established  and  well 
known  dealers,  who  have  a  reputation  to  maintain  and 
who  cannot  afford  to  make  money  at  the  loss  of  it." 

As  the  faithful  mariner  carefully,  and  at  all  times, 
studies  his  charts,  and  keeps  a  constant  oversight  of  his 
compass,  taking  nothing  for  granted,  but  always  making 
sure  of  his  position  ;  so  should  farmers,  with  equal  vigil- 
ance, supervise  their  affairs.  Well  conducted  agricultural 
newspapers  should  be  studied  with  a  view  of  ascertaining 
what  improvements  are  being  made.  Every  department 
of  the  farm  should  be  under  the  direct  personal  control 
of  its  owner,  and  a  minute  account  be  kept  of  every  thing 
that  is  brought  to  or  taken  from  the  farm. 

I  do  not  believe  in  having  any  regulation  that  is  not 
enforced.  No  rule  governing  the  affairs  of  this  farm  is 
more  rigidly  adhered  to  than  the  one  requiring  every 
animal  to  be  kindly  treated.  Apart  from  the  inhumanity 
of  cruelly  treating  cows,  especially  those  so  fastened  in 
their  stalls  that  they  cannot,  if  they  would,  defend  them- 
selves, there  is  a  direct  gain  in  treating  them  kindly.  No 
person — I  cannot  say  man,  for  no  true  man  would  do  it — 
guilty  of  beating  any  of  my  animals,  is  retained  one  hour. 
The  only  "  licking  "  is  to  be  done  by  my  cows,  not  on  them. 
They  do  it  as  an  act  of  affection,  not  in  anger,  and  love  to 
thus  caress  each  other,  and  those  who  are  kind  to  them. 


80  FARM   ECHOES. 

While  'travelling  some  two  years  ago,  I  saw  three 
wretched  specimens  of  humanity  ill-treating  a  cow  in  the 
most  frequented  street  of  a  town  through  which  I  was 
passing.  One  of  the  three  was  in  advance,  pulling  hard 
on  a  rope  attached  to  the  poor  creature's  horns.  Another 
was  on  her  back,  pretending  by  clownish  behavior  to  be 
riding  a  horse  ;  and  the  third  was  beating  the  hind  legs 
of  the  jaded  animal  with  a  large  sized  stick  which  had 
been  splintered  at  the  end  by  the  blows  that  had  been 
given.  I  am  sorry  to  add  that  none  of  the  lookers  on, 
and  there  were  not  a  few,  were  manly  enough  to  put  an 
end  to  this  brutality.  I  was  a  stranger  in  that  town,  and 
knew  none  of  the  parties  concerned,  but  that  poor  cow 
was  relieved  of  her  persecutors  before  she  passed  me. 

I  often  wish  that  the  men  who  milk  my  cows  were  all 
good  singers,  and  that  they  would  thus  use  their  voices 
while  filling  their  pails.  I  am  sure  the  pails  would  be 
better  filled.  Now  and  then  I  hear  the  welcome  voice  at 
milking  time,  and  delight  in  it,  however  difficult  it  might 
be  for  strangers  to  recognize  it  as  the  voice  of  song,  be- 
cause of  the  absence  of  what  is  sometimes  called  "  music," 
but  the  cows  understand  it  to  be  for  th^ir  benefit,  and 
not  only  take  the  will  for  the  deed,  but  pay  generously 
for  the  entertainment  in  an  increased  supply  of  milk. 
One  of  the  most  valuable  cows  in  my  herd  had  a  great 
aversion  to  any  one  standing  in  front  of  her  an^  stroking 
her  head.  Some  four  years  ago  she  was  very  ilj,  and  was 
carefully  watched  day  and  night  by  myself  or  some  re- 
sponsible person. 

Ever  since  then  she  has  not  only  been  willing  to  be  so 
petted  by  me,  but  delights  in  it.     She  has  most  gertainly 


FARM   ECHOES.  81 

not  forgotten  the  kindness  then  shown  her.  This  is 
more  than  can  be  said  of  some  human  beings.  A  few 
years  ago  a  lad  employed  to  watch  the  cows  while  in  their 
summer  pasture,  and  whose  fondness  for  them  was  mani- 
festly reciprocated,  was  sitting  on  the  stone  wall  at  the 
road  side,  with  some  of  them  quite  close  to  him.  A  man 
walking  past  playfully  seized  the  boy  by  the  shoulders 
and  shook  him.  This  so  enraged  one  of  the  cows  that 
she  did  her  best  to  hook  the  offender. 

Hours  were  spent  by  this  boy,  every  fine  day,  sitting 
on  the  grass  reading,  and  supporting  his  back  against 
the  cows  that  were  lying  down.  They  all  liked  this 
companionship,  and  patiently  waited  his  pleasure.  I 
have  more  than  once  wished  for  a  picture  of  this  youth- 
ful herd-keeper  with  my  pets. 

A  party  of  scientific  gentlemen  from  New  York,  who 
came  to  visit  the  farm,  went  to  a  field  to  see  the  young 
stock.  There  were  quite  a  number  of  yearlings  and 
calves  in  the  field,  and  the  visitors  expected  to  see  them 
run  away  as  they  were  approached  by  strangers.  Instead 
of  this  being  the  case,  the  little  ones  gathered  around  the 
visitors  as  though  bidding  them  welcome.  The  caresses 
were  quite  as  hearty  on  the  part  of  the  animals  as  on  the 
other  side.  ''Oh  !"  exclaimed  one  gentleman,  "if  Mr. 
Bergh  were  only  here  to  witness  this  sight,  how  much  ho 
would  enjoy  it." 

1  began  by  naming  my  animals  from  trees — Cedar, 
Chestnut,  Filbert,  Locust,  etc. — but  soon  exhausted  the 
list.  Names  are  now  obtained  by  young  lady  visitors 
leaving  their  cards  at  the  reception-room  of  the 
dairy.     On   one   occasion  a  large    party  of  ladies  and 


82  FARM  ECHOES. 

gentlemen  visited  the  farm,  and  among  other  queries, 
I  was  asked  how  names  were  obtained  for  so  many  ani- 
mals. The  question  was  answered,  and  I  mentioned  sev- 
eral names  thus  secured,  adding  :  "There  is  one  name  I 
think  exceedingly  pretty ;  it  is  that  of  a  friend  of  the  two 

sisters and just  referred  to.     She  has  never  been 

here,  nor  have  I  ever  seen  her,  but  she  certainly  has  a 

very  pretty  name,  A S ;  don't  you  think  so  ?"  A 

smile  on  every  face  led  me  to  suspect  that  the  name  was 
familiar  to  them,  and  that  there  was  some  pleasant  asso- 
ciation connected  with  it.  I  was  not  a  little  surprised 
to  find  that  the  young  lady  in  question  was  one  of  the 
party.  She  expressed  a  desire  to  see  her  namesake,  and 
was  much  pleased  with  its  looks  and  playful  ways. 

I  have  studiously  endeavored  to  guard  against  a  mis- 
take too  often  made  by  those  who  exchange  city  life  for 
farm  life,  and  who,  instead  of  taking  up  a  specialty  and 
perfecting  it,  foolishly  attempt  too  many  things  to  allow 
of  success  in  any  of  them.  They  must  deal  in  horses, 
cattle  of  various  kinds,  sheep,  swine,  poultry,  etc. 
Others  succeed  with  horses,  but  I  am  sure  that  I  should 
not,  having  neither  the  talent  nor  the  inclination  for 
that  kind  of  stock  raising.  Sheep  are  unquestionably  a 
profitable  investment  when  properly  cared  for,  but  it  is 
not  in  my  power  to  devote  the  necessary  attention  to 
them.  Even  Daisy  was  too  much  for  me,  and  had  to  be 
disposed  of,  not,  however,  to  the  butcher,  nor  to  one  who 
would  eat  him,  but  to  one  sure  to  treat  him  kindly. 

Of  swine  I  have  but  few.  Merely  enough  to  consume 
the  skimmed  milk  from  the  dairy,  not  needed  for  the 
calves.     It  is  freely  admitted  that  I  have  no  fondness  for 


FARM   ECHOES.  83 

pigs,  and  that  I  have  never  been  able  to  make  anything 
but  pigs  out  of  them.  Mr.  Edward  Burnet,  of  South- 
borough,  Mass.,  and  others,  have  succeeded  admirably 
with  these  creatures.  So  much  for  their  making  a  spe- 
cialty of  this  branch  of  farming.  _ 

There  must  be  a  certain  amount  of  danger  in  keeping 
such  animals,  if  there  be  any  truth  in  the  story  of  the 
Rhode  Island  pig  that  decided  the  destiny  of  this  coun- 
try by  bringing  about  the  war  of  1813.  It  is  said  that  a 
pig  broke  through  a  defective  fence  of  two  neighbors  in 
Ehode  Island.  Angry  words  were  followed  by  a  lawsuit. 
The  defendant  (the  pig  owner)  called  upon  a  lawyer 
whom  he  had  employed  on  previous  occasions,  and  found 
that  he  had  already  accepted  a  retainer  from  the  other 
party.  His  anger  was  thus  kindled,  and  his  influence 
was  successfully  exerted  in  defeating  the  election  of  the 
lawyer  to  the  State  Legislature.  One  vote  decided  the 
election  of  a  Senator  to  Congress.  England's  "  Order 
in  Council "  to  seize  and  confiscate  American  vessels,  and 
forcibly  take  sailors  from  them,  had  stirred  up  a  warlike 
spirit  at  Washington,  and  an  immediate  declaration  of 
war  was  also  carried  by  one  vote.  If  this  be  really  so, 
and  the  vote  of  the  Rhode  Island  Senator  did  precipitate 
a  war  which  would  have  been  averted  by  a  few  weeks' 
delay,  the  obnoxious  '* Order  in  Council"  having  been 
revoked,  but  unknown  to  the  authorities  at  Washington, 
because  of  the  absence  of  '*  cablegrams,"  then  that  pig 
caused  a  decided  commotion  between  this  and  the  mother 
country.  Farmers  who  keep  pigs  must  see  to  it  that 
their  fences  are  in  good  condition. 

Let  me  add,  before  taking  leave  of  my  animals,  a  few 


84  FABM   ECHOES. 

words  about  some  pets  that  were  on  my  farm  for  years, 
bat  which  cannot  be  considered  as  necessarily  belonging 
to  a  farm.  I  refer  to  three  dogs,  as  perfect  specimens 
of  their  respective  breeds  as  are  usually  seen,  viz  :  A 
large  and  exceedingly  graceful  English  greyhound,  named 
"  Chingachcook,"  a  direct  descendent  of  the  famous 
greyhound,  "Master  McGrath,"  which  was  knighted  by 
Her  Majesty  the  Queen  of  England,  and  two  little  ter- 
riers, one  a  "  Scotch,"  the  other  a  "  Skye."  These  three 
dogs  were  great  favorites,  and  accompanied  my  family 
and  our  visitors  in  their  walks  and  drives.  The  swift- 
ness of  the  hound  was  wonderful,  as  were  some  of  his 
leaps.  It  was  a  comical  sight  to  see  the  little  Skye,  with 
his  very  long  body  and  very  short  legs,  rolled  almost  into  a 
ball,  in  his  frantic  endeavors  to  keep  pace  with  the  hound, 
who  was  conscious  of  his  powers,  and  took  evident  de- 
light in  racing  with  his  diminutive,  but  decidedly  ambi- 
tious companion.  The  Skye  felt  in  duty  bound  to  give 
chase  to  all  intruding  animals,  regardless  of  their  size  or 
strength,  and  often  paid  dearly  for  his  folly.  On  more 
than  one  occasion  he  was  seen  to  pursue  a  fox,  but  never 
to  overtake  it.  Not  so,  however,  the  hound.  He  could 
soon  outrun  Reynard,  but  would  not  attack  him.  Once 
he  and  a  fox  that  he  had  overtaken,  played  together  for 
several  minutes,  when  the  cunning  of  the  creature  de- 
tected that  a  fox-hound  was  after  it,  and  off  it  dashed 
mto  the  woods,  leaving  Chingachcook  without  even  a 
parting  salutation.  The  Scotch  terrier  was  happiest 
when  tormenting  cats,  and  would  make  for  them  when- 
ever he  saw  them.  But  once,  that  I  know  of,  was  he 
mastered  by  one.     The  cat,  driven  to  extremities,  sprang 


FARM  ECHOES.  85 

upon  his  back  and  remained  there,  though  the  dog  was 
crazed  by  this  unexpected  performance  on  her  part. 
Never  was  a  dog  more  incensed,  and  could  he  have  dis- 
mounted pussy,  ho  would  assuredly  have  put  an  end  to  her 
existence,  though  she  possessed  ninety  times  nine  lives. 
As  he,  in  his  bewilderment,  rushed  past  a  tree,  the  cat 
again  showed  her  dexterity  by  springing  from  his  back 
into  it,  and  seeking  shelter  amoug  its  boughs.  Master 
Scot  was  evidently  glad  to  be  released,  and  thereafter 
that  cat  was  not  disturbed  by  him. 

So  many  of  our  visitors  became  apprehensive  of  hydro- 
phobia, that  I  felt  it  my  duty  to  part  with  the  dogs. 
This  was  done  most  reluctantly,  for  I  was  very  fond  of 
them,  though  I  cannot  confess  to  a  fondness  for  such 
animals  quite  equal  to  that  of  some  persons  I  have  known. 
The  most  remarkable  instance  of  this  kind  that  has 
ever  come  to  my  knowledge  was  in  Canada.  I  was 
travelling  through  that  country  and  called  upon  a  friend 
— one  of  the  leading  physicians  of  the  city — whom  I  had 
not  seen  for  years  Our  intercourse  suffered  a  temporary 
interruption.  The  doctor  was  applied  to  in  most  be- 
seeching and  pathetic  tones  to  cure  a  dog  that  had  been 
fighting  with  a  cur  which  proved  more  than  his  equal. 

**  Doc-tur — ah  !  doc-tur,  do  cure  my  poor  dog  !" — 
*'  Cure  your  dog ! "  exclaimed  the  astonished  M.  D. 
''What  have  I  to  do  with  your  dog,  sir  ?" — "Ah  !  doc- 
tur,  just  see  how  he  is  lacerated — do  cure  him." — "I 
can*t  do  anything  for  your  dog,"  again  replied  my  friend, 
and  in  a  tone  which  indicated  some  warmth  of  feeling. — 
"  But  ah  !  doc-tur,  I  am  so  afraid  he  will  die,  and  if  my 
poor  dog  should  die,  what  would  I  do  ?    I  could  stand  at 


86  FARM  ECHOES. 

the  grave  of  my  parents  without  shedding  a  tear,  but 
oh  !  I  cannot  part  with  my  dog."  This  was  too  much 
for  the  **doc-tur,"  and  in  some  way  the  front  door  of  his 
dwelling,  where  the  conversation  took  place,  was  sud- 
denly closed  between  the  enraged  "doc-tur"  and  the 
two  puppies  on  the  outside.  It  was  some  little  time  be- 
fore my  medical  friend  calmed  down. 


CHAPTER    IX. 
FARM  BUILDINGS  AND  FARMING  IMPLEMENTS. 

I  have  prided  myself  not  a  little  upon  having  excellent 
barns.  Great  care  was  taken  in  planning  and  building 
them.  Thousands  of  visitors,  some  days  numbering  over 
ninety,  have  expressed  admiration  of  them.  The  cattle, 
for  whose  special  benefit  they  were  erected,  have  given 
unmistakeable  signs  of  approval  of  them,  and  have  cer- 
tainly thriven  splendidly  in  them.  No  wonder  then  that 
I  was  somewhat  taken  aback  a  few  montlis  ago,  when  ad- 
dressed by  a  tramp,  who  pointed  to  my  largest  and  best 
barn,  and  asked  what  building  it  was.  Upon  being  told 
that  it  was  a  "barn,"  he  replied  :.  "Oh  !  I  thought  it 
was  a  poorhouse.  They  have  poorhouses  just  like  it  in 
the  old  country."  The  fellow  passed  on,  no  doubt  en- 
joying his  little  joke,  and  I  comforted  myself  by  think- 
ing what  excellent  poorhouses  there  must  be  in  the  "old 
country,"  though  I  could  not  call  to  mind  ever  having 


FARM  ECHOES. 


87 


Been  any  such  in  my  visits  there.  Perhaps  I  had  not 
been  in  the  oldest  parts  of  the  **old  country." 

My  principal  cattle  barns  form  three  sides  of  an  oblong 
square  with  a  southern  exposure. 

The  room  one  hundred  feet  by  forty  feet  is  eleven  feet 
high,  and  is  lighted  by  eighteen  large  double-sashed  win- 


-N- 


100  y40 


35 


Vil 


FhJLS  OF  BARNS. 


dows,  opening  top  and  bottom.  It  contains  stalls  for 
forty-eight  cows,  twelve  in  each  of  the  four  sections,  so 
that  they  have  ample  room,  much  more  than  is  usually 
allowed,  but  none  too  much  in  my  opinion.  There  is  a 
free  circulation  of  pure  air,  both  the  cow-room,  and  the 


88  FARM  ECHOES. 

cellar  below  it,  being  ventilated  through  the  cupolas  on 
the  roof. 

Three  wide  passage-ways  run  the  entire  length  of  the 
room,  one  on  either  side  back  of  the  cows,  and  one  in  the 
center,  toward  which  they  face,  and  from  which  they  are 
fed.  There  are  also  three  passage  ways  crossing  the 
room,  one  at  each  end  and  one  in  the  center. 

The  wash-room  (a)  or  as  the  men  call  it,  the  "parlor," 
communicates  with  this  room,  and  every  man  is  required 
to  wash  his  face  and  hands,  and  brush  his  hair  before 
milking. 

Too  many  persons  give  a  well  kept  dairy  all  the  credit 
for  clean,  pure  milk.     Cleanliness  and  purity  begin  at  the 


-n^- 


L 


INTJUIOB   OF   O.NE   O^   TUE   BAKNS. 


barn.  When  milk  is  taken  to  the  dairy  in  proper  con- 
dition, it  may  by  good  management  in  that  department, 
be  kept  pure,  but  no  dairy,  however  magnificently  kept, 
can  transform  an  impure  article  Into  that  which  is  fit  for 
use.  Some  ladies  who  were  visiting  the  barn,  passed  out 
of  the  "parlor"  on  one  occasion,  as  I  was  making  my 
customary  tour  of  inspection,  and  commented  upon  what 
they  were  pleased  to  call  "  exquisite  neatness."  Referring 
to  the  regulation  that  the  milkers  must  wash,  etc.,  before 
milking,  one  playfully  asked  if  they  wore  kid  gloves 
while  milking.  As  they  were  all  strangers  to  me,  I 
did  not  like  to  say,  **  No,  but  my  cows  are  frequently 
milked  with  calf -skin  gloves." 


FAEM   ECHOES,  89 

The  floors  of  the  cow  stables  are  sanded  every  day, 
Bummer  and  winter,  though  the  animals  are  there  during 
the  summer  only  long  enough  to  be  milked,  morning  and 
evening.  The  sand  is  procured  from  the  shore  of  a 
charming  lake  (the  largest  in  the  State,  I  believe),  three 
miles  distant.  These  floors  are  so  evenly,  and  artistically, 
covered  by  the  sand,  especially  one  in  charge  of  a  man 
who  is  a  genius  in  such  business,  that  many  visitors  have 
been  reluctant  to  walk  on  it.  A  city  lady  not  long  ago, 
visited  the  bams  in  company  with  her  city-bred  son. 
While  waiting  for  the  doors  to  be  opened,  she  became 
apprehensive  that  her  son's  dress  might  suffer,  and  sug- 
gested to  him  that  he  had  better  roll  up  his  pants  so  as  to 
keep  them  clean.  He  promptly  acted  upon  this  precaution- 
ary suggestion,  and  had  no  sooner  done  so  than  the  sliding 
doors  opened  and  revealed  such  a  floor  as  led  him  to  at 
once  take  the  reef  out  of  his  pants,  to  use  a  nautical  term, 
and  in  they  both  walked,  interchanging  a  hasty  and  ex- 
pressive glance,  followed  by  the  aforesaid  genius,  who 
was  not  a  little  amused  by  these  proceedings.  It  may 
be  asked  why  this  daily  spreading  of  sand  upon  the  barn 
floors  ?  The  answer  is  because  of  cleanliness  and  purity, 
and  because  it  keeps  the  animals  from  slipping.  Not 
only  so,  it  pays  the  expense  of  gettmg  it,  when  placed  on 
my  lands.  In  planning  the  bams,  care  was  taken  to  have 
the  feed  for  the  animals  stored  immediately  over  them, 
BO  as  to  avoid  the  expense  and  delay  of  moving  it  any 
great  distance  at  the  time  of  feeding. 

Over  the  north  room  to  which  reference  has  been  made, 
two  hundred  tons  of  hay  can  be  stored,  which  is  more 
than  enough  for  the  forty-eigl:t  cows  beneath,  and  for 


90  FARM   ECHOES. 

those  in  the  adjoining  room,  which  is  fitted  up  with  box 
stalls. 

This  hay  loft  is  approached  by  a  massive  walled  and 
curved  roadway,  packed  with  stone  in  the  center,  thirty 
feet  wide,  and  rising  to  a  height  of  twelve  feet,  where  it 
connects  on  the  north  side,  or  back  of  the  bam  with  a  , 
double  "barn  floor"  in  the  middle  of  the  loft,  and  upon 
which  four  loads  of  hay  may  be  driven  at  the  came  time. 
The  hay  is  taken  from  the  wagons  by  horse-forks  (one 
over  each  of  the  two  mows),  and  a  ton  of  it  is  frequently 
unloaded  in  four  minutes,  and  in  four  forksful — one  a 
minute. 

But  one  fork  has  been  used  at  a  time,  consequently 
but  one  wagon  can  thus  be  unloaded  at  a  time,  but  as 
steam  power  will  probably  be  used  hereafter,  I  hope  that 
two  wagons  can  be  unloaded  at  once.  An  accurate  ac- 
count is  kept  of  every  hay  crop — the  day  it  is  cut,  the 
field  from  which  it  is  taken,  the  weight,  and  the  bam  in 
which  it  is  placed. 

The  weight  is  ascertained  upon  a  pair  of  Fairbanks* 
scales,  well  protected  from  the  weather  by  a  building 
erected  for  that  purpose.  A  little  over  three  hundred 
tons  of  hay  are  now  gathered  each  season,  a  large  portion 
of  which  is  in  the  barns  on  the  afternoon  of  the  day  on 
whicli  it  is  cut.  So  much  for  the  invention  of  Mowing 
Machines,  Tedders,  and  Horse  Rakes. 

From  twelve  to  sixteen  acres  of  grass  have  frequently 
been  cut,  cured,  and  housed  the  same  day.  The  largest 
quantity  drawn  from  the  fields  and  placed  in  my  bams 
in  any  one  day  was  a  few  pounds  less  than  thirty  tons. 

The  building  forming  ihe  east  side  of  the  square. 


FAKM   ECHOES.  91 

shown  on  page  87,  is  one  hundred  and  ninety-one  feet 
long  and  thirty-five  feet  wide.  The  first  floor  was  originally 
divided  into  six  rooms,  one  each  for  oxen,  bulls,  calves, 
horses,  wagons,  and  harness,  etc.,  but  the  increase  of  the 
herd  rendered  it  necessary  to  remove  the  oxen,  horses, 
wagons,  and  harness,  etc.,  to  another  building,  so  that 
those  three  adjoining  rooms  are  now  thrown  into  one, 
which  is  filled  with  cows. 

The  ox-room  has  been  fitted  up  with  box  stalls  for 
calves  and  yearlings,  the  nursery,  or  calf -room,  with  its 
twenty  little  stalls,  being  too  small  for  present  wants. 
The  animals  in  this  barn  have  a  full  supply  of  hay  im- 
mediately over  them,  as  is  the  case  in  all  my  barns. 

The  building  on  the  west  side  of  the  square  has  recently 
been  enlarged  to  its  present  size,  one  hundred  and  fifty- 
one  feet  long,  and  contains  stalls  for  fifty-two  cows.  It 
connects  with  the  North  Barn,  forty  feet  wide,  which 
makes  up  the  length  of  the  one  hundred  and  ninety-one 
feet  bam  on  the  east  side. 

The  Dairy  Building,  also  recently  enlarged,  now  meas- 
ures thirty-six  feet  by  sixty-two  feet,  and  jstwo  and  a 
half  stories  high. 

It  contains  on  the  first  floor,  a  reception-room  for 
visitors,  who  are  admitted  to  the  Butter  Department  on 
"Wednesdays,  Fridays,  and  Saturdays,  from  eleven  o'clock 
A.  M.  until  four  o'clock  P.  M.,  chum-room,  engine-room, 
room  for  washing  tins,  etc.,  three  milk-rooms,  one  of 
which  is  a  tank-room,  and  two  rooms  for  milk  and  butter 
boxes.  A  large,  well-aired  cellar,  with  cemented  walls 
and  floor,  is  used  for  bottling  milk. 

The  second  story  contains  a  large  room  for  milk  boxes. 


92 


FABM   ECHOES. 


FABM   ECHOES.  93 

These  boxes  are  taken  to  this  room  as  they  are  returned 
from  New  York  and  Brooklyn.  Thence  the  bottles  are 
carried  to  the  wash-room  adjoining.  The  boxes  are  then 
cleaned  and  got  ready  for  use  again.  When  needed  they 
are  lowered  to  cellar  by  elevator,  from  there  they  are 
sent  by  four  two-horse  teams  to  the  railroad  depot  for 
transmission  to  New  York  and  Brooklyn. 

The  boiler-room  connects  with  the  dairy  on  the  north, 
and  hot-water  pipes  extend  thence  to  every  part  of  the 
dairy  building,  for  heating  and  for  washing  purposes. 

The  ice-house,  having  a  capacity  of  more  than  five 
hundred  tons,  is  not  far  from  the  dairy. 

Some  cows,  generally  those  not  giving  milk,  are  kept 
in  the  bam  shown  in  the  picture  on  the  opposite  page. 

The  horse-barn  measures  sixty-six  feet  by  forty  feet, 
with  a  communicating  L  fifty  feet  long,  which  gives 
room  for  fourteen  horses  in  a  row.  The  wagon-room, 
forty-six  feet  by  forty  feet,  has  but  one  post — a  mas- 
sive one  in  the  center  of  the  room — thus  giving  ample 
space  for  wagons  and  for  moving  them  as  desired. 

Quite  a  small  churn  was  first  used  in  my  dairy.  This 
was  replaced  by  a  larger  one,  requiring  two  persons  to 
turn  it,  one  at  each  end.  An  increased  demand  for  but- 
ter called  for  a  yet  larger  chum,  which  was  worked  by 
pony  power.  A  full-sized  horse  was  soon  needed,  and 
now  the  churning  is  done  by  steam,  in  a  large-sized  fac- 
tory chum  of  a  new  and  greatly  improved  pattern. 
There  may  be  others  quite  its  equal,  perhaps  better,  but 
it  does  its  work  so  well  that  I  know  of  no  change  that 
could  be  made  to  advantage,  unless  it  be  the  inven- 
tion of  a  chum  that  will  produce  good  butter  at  one  end 


94 


FARM  ECHOES. 


by  putting  hay  or  grass  in  at  the  other  end.  When  such 
a  labor-saving  machine  is  constructed,  and  when  pipes 
are  laid  from  country  dairies  directly  to  the  city  resi- 
dences of  families  who  prefer  to  be  thus  supplied  with 
milk,  without  the  aid  of  railroads  or  milkmen,  then  there 
will  be  a  decided  panic  in  the  butter  and  milk  markets. 
It  would  be  something  new  for  madame,  in  her  city 
home  a  hundred  miles  away,  to  ask  by  telephone  for  so 
many  pounds  of  butter,  or  so  many 
quarts  of  milk  from  any  cow  she 
might  be  pleased  to  select,  and 
have  it  on  her  table  within  a  few 
minutes.  Visionary  as  this  may 
seem,  substitute  "a  few  hours"  for 
"a  few  minutes,"  and  my  fiction 
becomes  a  fact,  for  a  telephone  con- 
nects my  farm  with  the  Western 
Union  Telegraph  office  in  the  vil- 
lage, and  orders  from  distant  cities, 
for  any  of  the  products  of  my  dairy 
can  thus  be  immediately  executed 
— by  rails,  however,  not  by  pipes. 
The  cream  is  not  churned  until  it  has  been  strained 
through  holes  smaller  than  an  ordinary-sized  pin  would 
make.  Owing  to  its  richness  and  solidity,  it  is  necessary 
to  force  it  through.  This  is  done  by  a  pump  with 
double  *' plungers,"  the  strainer  can,  at  the  bottom  of 
which  the  strainers  are  attached,  being  first  placed  on 
another  can.  The  butter  is  thus  made  all  of  one  con- 
sistency. 
To  avoid  the  unnecessary  handling  of  the  butter,  it  is 


CBEAM  STBA.INUS. 


FARM   ECHOES. 


95 


worked  upon  an  ingeniously  contrived  turn-table,  by 
which  it  is  carried,  by  cog  wheels,  under  a  revolving, 
cone-shaped,  and  grooved  presser,  which  makes  deep 
channels  down  which  the  buttermilk  escapes  to  the  edge 


KOTAKT   BUTTEB-WOBKEB. 


of  the  table.     It  is  then  led  by  pipes  to  a  tub  placed  un- 
derneath to  receive  it. 

Luxuriating  here  in  the  purest  and  richest  of  cream 
and  milk,  q,nd  realizing  that  many  thousands  of  the  resi- 


PBINT  OF  BUTTER. 


FBINT  IN  NAPKIN  AMD  BOX. 


dents  of  New  York  and  Brooklyn  were  actually  suffering 
for  the  want  of  these  blessings,  I  resolved  more  than 


96  FARM   ECHOES. 

three  years  ago  to  supply  that  want.  Milk  was  sent  from 
my  dairy  to  those  cities  in  one  quart  tin  cans,  and  cream 
in  pint  and  half-pint  tin  cans,  all  the  cans  being  sealed 
here,  and  not  opened  until  the  seals  were  broken  at  the 
residences  of  the  consumers.  Glass  bottles  were  substi- 
tuted for  the  tin  cans,  and  there  has  ever  since  been  such 
a  demand  for  the  milk  and  cream  thus  put  up,  as  has  ex- 
ceeded my  ability  to  supply  it,  though  my  herd  has  been 
more  than  doubled,  and  will  probably  soon  be  twice  as 
large  as  now. 

By  special  agreement  made  with  some  reliable  farmers 
in  this  neighborhood,  thorouglily  pure  and  rich  milk  in 
a  limited  quantity  is  received  from  them.  They  are 
bound  by  a  written  contract,  duly  signed  and  witnessed, 
to  observe  all  the  regulations  deemed  necessary  to  secure 
the  best  and  purest  milk,  and  from  Jersey  cows  (fre- 
quently called  "  Alderneys  "),  so  soon  as  the  change  from 
*' native  cows"  can  be  effected.  To  prevent  the  possi- 
bility of  mistake  or  fraud,  the  services  of  a  medical  gen- 
tleman of  high  professional  standing  have  been  secured 
to  test  the  milk  from  every  herd,  my  own  as  well  as  the 
others  to  which  I  have  referred,  also  the  milk  of  each 
and  every  cow  in  all  these  herds.  These  tests  are  most 
thoroughly  made,  and  a  full  written  report  of  all  is  given 
me.  The  effect  of  this  frequent  and  searching  profes- 
sional investigation  has  been  most  beneficial,  and  the 
farmers,  who  at  first  stood  in  no  little  dread  of  it,  now 
fully  realize  the  decided  advantage  it  is  to  them.  Every 
cow  that  has  not  given  satisfaction  has  been  promptly 
disposed  of  by  them,  and  there  is  now  a  healthy  rivalry 
— an  esprit  de  corps — among  them,  just  such  as  I  have 


FAKM  ECHOES. 


97 


TESTING  QOALITT  OF  MILK. 


98  FARM  ECHOES. 

been  desirous  to  create,  one  which  is  producing  much 
good  to  themselves,  and  which  confers  a  benefit  upon  a 
larger  number  of  city  families  than  could  otherwise  be 
reached,  and  vastly  greater  than  they  have  any  idea  of. 
.  I  have  offered  a  premium  to  the  farmer  who,  by  the  doc- 
tor's report,  has  the  best  record  at  the  end  of  a  certain 
specified  time. 

All  the  milk  sent  from  this  farm  (except  such  as  is 
known  as  special,  being  always  from  the  same  cow,  and 
wanted  for  invalids  and  infants)  is  put  into  a  large 
tank,  made  at  an  expense  of  several  hundred  dollars,  be- 
cause constructed  of  the  best  and  purest  materials.  After 
being  sufficiently  cooled  in  this  tank,  which  is  surrounded 
by  iced  water  so  as  to  extract  the  animal  heat  as  quickly 
as  possible,  the  milk  is  drawn,  twenty  bottles  being  filled 
at  the  same  time,  through  as  many  nickel-plated  faucets. 
It  is  only  in  this  way  that  consumers  can  have  milk  of 
unvarying  quality.  Every  precaution  that  can  be  thought 
of  is  taken.  All  the  milk  is  strained  and  re-strained 
most  carefully.  Each  of  the  glass  bottles  in  which  it  is 
shipped  is  sealed  with  a  label  upon  which  is  printed  the 
date  it  leaves  the  dairy.  Twenty  bottles  are  packed  in  a 
strong  wooden  box,  which  is  locked  before  it  leaves  the 
dairy.  These  boxes  are  placed  in  a  railroad  car,  which  is 
locked  by  my  men,  and  unlocked  by  the  agents  at  New 
York.  It  will  be  seen  by  the  picture  of  the  bottles  used, 
that  the  families  who  take  the  milk  are  required  to  wash 
them.  This  should  be  done  as  soon  as  they  are  emptied. 
Two,  and  sometimes  throe  persons  are  kept  busy  at  the 
agency  washing  them,  as  they  are  taken  there  by  the  men 
who  distribute  the  milk,   and   five  persons  are    kept 


FABM   ECHOES. 


99 


BOTTLING   MILK. 


100 


FARM    ECnOES. 


actively  employed  in  the  dairy  washing  them  az  they  are 
returned  here.  No  bottle  is  used  until  it  has  thus  been 
thoroughly  cleansed. 

I  have  endeavored  to  heed  the  admonition  : 

"  Be  not  the  first  by  whom  the  new  is  tried, 
Nor  yet  the  last  to  lay  the  old  aside." 

New  farming  implements  are  carefully  examined  be- 
fore they  are  purchased,  and  thoroughly  tested  before 


MILK  BOTTLE. 


bemg  put  into  active  service.  I  had,  for  instance,  heard 
much  of  a  Hay  Loader,  and  was  induced  to  buy  one.  In- 
stead of  waiting  until  the  haying  season,  when  all  hands 
would  be  busy,  and  when  time  should  not  be  occupied  in 
making  experiments  that  could  be  previously  made,  I  had 
some  old  hay  put  in  a  "windrow," and  the  loader  tested. 
A  man  was  placed  in  the  wagon  to  receive  the  hay  and 
distribute  it  in  the  vehicle,  but  it  came  in  so  fast  that  he 
became  alarmed,  and  fearing  that  he  would  be  buried 


FAEM   ECHOES. 


101 


alive,  called  lustily  to  the  driver  to  stop,  much  to  the 
amusement  of  all  present. 

Numerous  inventions  are  submitted  to  me,  some  of 
which  are  recommended  almost  as  strongly  as  was  the 


"scarecrow,"  which  was  said  not  only  to  keep  off  the 
crows,  but  also  to  so  impress  upon  them  the  sin  of  theft, 
that  they  would  bring  back  all  they  had  stolen  in  previ- 
ous years. 


103  PAEM   ECHOES. 


CHAPTER     X. 

CAN    FARMING    IN    NEW    ENGLAND    BE    MADE 
REMUNERATIVE  ? 

"Does  farming  in  New  England  pay  ?'*  is  not  an  un- 
common question.  As  well  might  it  be  asked,  ''Does 
merchandizing  in  New  England  pay  ?"  "  Does  trading  of 
any  kind  in  New  England  pay  ?"  "  Does  it  pay  to  engage 
in  the  shipping  or  manufacturing  business,  or  in  the  legal 
or  medical  profession,  in  New  England  ?" 

The  thousands  of  New  Englanders  who  have  engaged 
in  no  other  occupation  than  farming,  and  who  have, 
through  industry,  frugality,  and  good  sense,  acquired  not 
only  a  competence,  but  an  independence,  conclusirely 
prove  that  farming  in  this  section  of  country  can  be 
made  remunerative.  Thousands  who  have  had  neither 
this  industry,  frugality,  nor  good  sense,  have  proved  with 
equal  certainty  that  their  attempts  at  farming  in  New 
England  have  been  failures,  because  of  the  absence  of 
these  requisite  characteristics. 

Because  farming  here,  or  elsewhere,  can  be  made  re- 
munerative, it  does  not  follow  that  it  will  necessarily  be 
so.  The  farmer  has,  as  a  general  rule,  quite  as  much  to 
do  with  these  results  as  has  his  farm.  Farms  are  photo- 
graphs of  their  owners.  As  well  might  it  be  asked, 
"  Does  farming  pay  anywhere  ?"  as  to  ask  if  it  pays  in 
New  England.  Why  should  it  not  be  profitable  here  as 
elsewhere.     Some  kinds  of  farming  cannot  be  success- 


FARH   ECHOES.  103 

fully  prosecuted  here,  but  this  does  not  apply  to  all  kinds. 
Some  pay  better  here  than  elsewhere,  and  vice  versa. 

All  branches  of  farming  are  not  alike  suited  to  all 
localities,  nor  to  all  climates.  The  vineyard  of  California, 
the  cotton  of  the  South,  the  grain  of  the  West,  each  claims 
its  proper  soil  and  air.  Though  these  products  would 
not  thrive  in  our  more  rugged,  but  far  more  invigorating 
chmate,  our  crops  thrive  best  in  it.  As  in  this  section 
of  our  country,  so  in  the  others  named,  the  product  is 
not  of  the  soil  only,  but  of  the  industry  and  skill  of  the 
husbandman.  Success  is  not  to  be  expected  anywhere 
where  energy  and  thrift  are  not  co-laborers  with  the  soil. 

True,  some  unsuccessful  ones  leave  this  part  of  the 
country,  and  prosper  elsewhere,  not  always,  however,  be- 
cause of  the  change  of  locality,  but  frequently  because 
of  the  change  in  themselves.  They  have  been  forced  to 
work  as  they  would  not  work  before.  It  must  not  be 
supposed  that  this  remark  in  any  way  applies  to  the 
many  worthy  and  industrious  New  Englanders  who  go 
hence  to  seek  their  fortunes,  in  other,  and,  to  them, 
more  genial  climates,  and  who  contribute  largely  to  the 
prosperity  of  whatever  place  they  select.  Without  per- 
sistent energy  and  pluck  it  is  impossible  to  gather  gold 
or  grapes  in  California,  grain  in  the  West,  cotton  in  the 
South,  or,  in  the  Northern  and  Eastern  States,  the  pro- 
ducts peculiar  to  them. 

Grant  it  that  our  soil  is  more  sterile  than  in  some  other 
■places.  It  is  not  nearly  as  much  so  as  is  supposed.  In 
the  wise  providence  of  God,  our  people  are  more  hardy 
than  the  average  type  of  men,  and  are  thus  fitted  for 
their  w^ftk.     In  many  portions  of  this  much-abused  sec- 


104  FARM  ECHOES. 

tion  of  our  country,  the  soil  is  as  rich  and  productive  as 
can  be  found  anywhere.  Who  that  settles  upon  a  farm 
and  spends  much  of  his  time  driving  about  the  country, 
pleasure  seeking,  instead  of  busying  himself  and  his 
horses  in  clearing  and  enriching  his  fields,  can  expect  to 
make  farming  pay  ?  The  argument  that  *'  It  costs 
nothing"  to  so  amuse  himself,  because  the  horses  and 
vehicle  are  his  own,  not  hired,  is  a  common,  but  false  and 
ruinous  one.  Just  what  he  and  his  team  might  have 
accomplished  by  persistent  energy  during  those  hours  of 
self-indulgence,  multiplied  by  the  number  of  the  many 
days  in  each  year  so  occupied,  gauges  the  loss  he  has  thus 
sustained ;  a  loss  as  real  as  though  that  amount  had  been 
taken  from  his  purse  and  thrown  into  the  sea.  Daily 
(perhaps  morning  and  evening)  driving  to  the  post-oflSce, 
avowedly  for  letters  and  papers,  received,  it  may  be,  as 
often  as  once  a  week,  and  which  might  just  as  well  be 
obtained  through  a  passing  neighbor  whose  legitimate 
business  took  him  to  the  village,  is  as  costly  and  injurious 
as  is  the  daily  lounging  in  village  stores  to  gossip  and 
help  make  others  idle.  "  Time  is  money"  is  a  significant 
notice  occasionally  displayed  in  city  stores  and  offices. 
It  should  have  a  conspicuous  place  in  every  country  store 
where  the  proprietor  wishes  to  do  a  profitable  business  on 
a  cash  basis,  and  expects  to  save  his  crackers  and  cheese 
from  too  frequent  sampling.  Loafing  costs  many  more 
dollars  than  is  generally  supposed,  and  is  an  unprofitable 
Investment  for  the  loafer  and  for  those  on  whose  premises 
he  loafs.  No  city  man  of  business,  be  his  occupation 
what  it  may,  can  succeed  if  he  thus  wastes  his  time  and 
energies,  nor  can  any  farmer.     It  is  indeed  ffeinful  to 


FARM   ECHOES.  105 

travel  through  some  farming  districts  of  our  much  fav- 
ored land,  and  see  dilapidated  dwelling  houses  and  barns, 
some  unoccupied  and  forsaken  ;  and  so  comparatively  few 
new  ones  near  them  to  take  their  places  as  evidences  of 
continued  life  and  vigor.  The  tale  they  tell  is  a  sad 
one  in  too  many  instances,  and  may  be  easily  learned. 

Indolence  and  intemperance  are  twin  vices.  Too  often 
they  are  like  the  Siamese  twins,  and  cannot  be  separated. 
Each  sustains  the  other,  if  it  does  not  create  the  other. 
This  double-headed  curse  leaves  sad  traces  wherever  it 
goes,  and  if  there  is  one  woe  deeper  than  another,  it 
drags  its  enslaved  victims  into  the  deepest.  The  very 
ground  seems  to  cry  out  against  it,  as  it  wastes  under 
neglect  and  foreclosed  mortgages.  No  superscription  by 
the  hand  of  man  reveals  the  cause  of  this  scene  of  desolan 
tion  and  death,  but  the  wayfaring  man,  if  not  a  "fool," 
may  clearly  discern  in  it  the  inscription  by  the  hand  of 
God  upon  the  pages  of  inspiration  : 

"They  have  erred  through  wine,  and 
Through  strong  drink  are  they  out  of  the  way." 

They  probably  began  to  indulge  moderately  in  intoxi- 
cating drinks,  but  became  enslaved  and  ruined  by  them. 
Their  children  were,  perhaps,  driven  from  what  might 
otherwise  have  been  to  them  a  happy  and  prosperous 
home.  Farming  (if  such  an  inappropriate  term  can  be 
used  in  this  connection)  was  made  offensive  to  them,  and 
they  eagerly  escaped  from  the  degradation  to  which  a 
drunken  parent  had  brought  them.  Did  that  lost  parent 
sin  alone  ?  No !  "Who,  then,  will  undertake  to  fathom 
the  depth  of  that  **woe"  pronounced  by  an  offended 


106  FARM   ECHOES. 

God  against  "  him  that  giveth  his  neighbor  drink  ?"  I 
am  thankful  that  there  is  as  little  of  this  terrible  evil  in 
this  section  of  the  country  as  in  any  I  have  ever  seen. 
With  gratitude  let  it  be  added,  I  know  of  no  such  de- 
serted farms  in  this  neighborhood. 

Some  farms  are  so  outrageously  neglected  that  it  would 
be  better  were  they  entirely  abandoned  by  their  occu- 
pants, who  are  playing  the  dog-in-the-manger  game. 
They  occupy,  but  will  not  improve,  and  because  they  oc- 
cupy, others  who  would  improve  and  prosper,  are  deter- 
red from  so  doing.  These  cumberers  of  the  ground  have 
much  to  say  about  farming  '*not  paying."  They  cer- 
tainly speak  from  experience,  and  should  be  credited  to 
the  extent  of  believing  their  statement,  but  I  should  be 
sorry  to  credit  them  in  any  other  way,  or  believe  that 
their  farms  could  not  be  profitably  worked.  If  it  will  not 
pay  to  take  judicious  care  of  fields,  cattle,  farming  im- 
plements, etc.,  it  certainly  will  not  pay  to  neglect  them. 

The  merchant  who  puts  no  money  into  the  bank  would 
be  unreasonable  were  he  to  expect  that  he  could  draw  any 
out ;  and  so  with  the  farmer  who  neglects  to  enrich  his 
fields,  but  hopes  to  get  crops  from  them  year  after  year. 
He  starves  himself  who  starves  his  fields,  and  justly  so. 
Land  that  is  generously  enriched  will  be  generous  in  its 
yield.  Like  its  divine  Master,  it  "loveth  a  cheerful 
giver."  It  is  quite  true  that  there  are  ** sermons  in 
stones."  The  earth  too  is  a  sermonizer  of  no  mean  order. 
Its  preaching  is  thoroughly  practical  and  convincing. 
Saint  Paul  listened  to  its  teachings,  for  did  he  not  echo 
the  voice  of  nature  when  he  told  the  Corinthians  that 
"  He  who  soweth  sparingly  shall  reap  also  sparingly,  and 


FARM  ECHOES.  107 

he  who  soweth  bountifully  shall  reap  also  bountifully." 
If  farming  in  New  England  cannot  be  made  remuner- 
ative, where  did  the  many  farmers  who  are  well-off  finan- 
cially get  their  money  ?  Some  of  them,  doubtless,  regret 
that  they  have  not  kept  their  funds  in  their  legitimate 
business,  by  continuing  to  improve  their  lands  and  mak- 
ing them  yet  more  profitable,  rather  than  invest  in  out- 
side securities  which  have  proved  disastrous — investments 
of  which  they  knew  nothing  definitely,  but  which  they 
hoped  would  yield  a  large  return.     They  have  discovered 


MAKIMO  A  MOUND  OF  STONES. 


to  their  sorrow  that  the  bulls  and  bears  in  those  city 
menageries  called  "  Stock  Exchanges,"  are  far  more  dan- 
gerous animals  than  are  the  country  ones  which  they  can 
control  without  foreign  aid.  What  better  investment  can 
a  farmer  have  than  corn  **  stalks  "and  plow  "shares?" 
If  '*  it  paid  "  to  clear  a  portion  of  the  farm,  why  not 
make  yet  further  improvements  and  get  a  larger  return 
from  it  ?  Farms  do  not  clear  themselves.  At  least  I  know 
of  none  that  have  done  so,  nor  do  I  know  of  any  super- 
human aid  that  will  do  the  work,  although  I  believe  that 
our  globe  revolves.     One  farmer  cannot  be  convinced  of 


108  FARM   ECHOES. 

this.  His  is  an  unusaally  rocky  farm,  and  he  insists  that 
if  the  earth  did  "go  round,"  and  his  farm  ever  "got 
bottom  side  up,"  there  would  be  a  gi-eat  rattling  of  stones 
below,  and  that  he  "  rather  guessed  "  he  would  be  saved 
the  trouble  of  getting  any  more  stones  off  his  land. 

The  surplus  stones  on  Echo  Farm  are  packed  into 
ravines,  and  covered  with  earth.  When  there  are  no 
ravines  to  fill  up,  they  are  piled  in  large  mounds  and 
covered  with  earth.  The  crops  on  these  covered  stones, 
both  in  ravines  and  mounds,  have  always  been  large, 
and  less  affected  by  drouth  than  in  surrounding  fields. 

The  farmer  who  imagines  that  his  work  for  the  year  is 
completed  when  he  has  gathered  his  hay  crop,  shoots  as 
wide  of  the  mark  as  does  the  merchant  who  considers 
that  his  debt  is  discharged  when  he  gives  his  note  for  it, 
payable  "ninety  days  after  date." 

The  work  of  a  thrifty  farmer  is  never  finished.  Each 
day,  whether  it  be  in  June,  December,  or  any  other 
month  of  the  year,  brings  its  work,  and  plenty  of  it. 
The  haying  season  is  not  the  only  busy  one  on  a  farm, 
though  the  old  proverb:  "Make  hay  while  the  sun 
shines,"  has  doubtless  created  a  contrary  impression. 
Sunshine  is  needed  for  other  and  equally  important 
work,  especially  in  the  fall  of  the  year,  when  leaves  are 
to  be  gathered  for  bedding  animals,  and  when  the  sun- 
shine is  most  valuable,  because  we  then  have  so  little 
of  it.  Dried  leaves  make  the  best  bedding,  and  are  an 
excellent  fertilizer. 

The  censure  "Nothing  but  leaves,"  certainly  does  not 
attach  to  our  trees.  In  ornament  and  in  use,  they  do  all 
that  is  expected  of  them.     Robing  themselves  in  their 


FABM   ECHOES.  109 

delicate  and  beautiful  spring  costume,  the  richness  of 
whose  verdure  increases  as  the  seasons  advance,  they  add 
tint  to  tint,  each  leaf  seeming  to  rival  the  others  in  gran- 
deur, until  they  bid  us  their  autumnal  adieu.  Their 
beauty  then  gives  place  to  utility,  and  every  farmer 
should  rejoice  that  it  is  with  leaves,  as  Pope  said  of  men  : 

"  Another  race  the  following  spring  supplies." 

The  farmers  around  me  looked  with  no  little  distrust 
upon  my  introduction  into  this  neighborhood  of  Jersey 
cattle,  and  long  remained  incredulous.  They  are  now 
convinced  that  their  fears  were  groundless,  and  many  of 
them  are  exchanging  their  so-called  **  native  cows"  for 
Jerseys.     Others  are  sure  to  do  so  ere  long. 

The  following  is  the  substance  of  a  conversation  I  had 
with  a  neighboring  farmer  about  two  years  ago.  He  had 
just  praised  my  Jerseys  very  highly,  and  I  naturally  in- 
quired why  he  did  not  keep  the  same  kind  of  stock.  "I 
cannot  afford  to  do  so,"  was  the  reply. — "That  is 
strange,"  I  remarked.  **I  certainly  cannot  afford  to 
keep  such  animals  as  you  have,  and  yet  you  tell  me  that 
you  cannot  afford  to  keep  Jerseys,  such  as  I  have.  There 
seems  to  be  a  contradiction  here." 

*'  How  much  do  you  get  for  your  calves,"  I  next 
asked. 

"  About  a  dollar  or  a  dollar  and  a  half  before  they  are 
fattened." 

**Mine  sell  for  from  one  hundred  dollars  to  three  hun- 
dred dollars  when  quite  young.  There  is  a  great  dif- 
ference in  our  figures,  is  there  not  ?" 

"  Yes." 


110  FARM   ECHOES. 

"  Do  your  cows  eat  less  than  mine  P* 
**No.     I  believe  mine  eat  more  than  yours.** 
"  Are  yours  more  hardy  than  mine  ?" 
"I  used  to  think  so,  but  have  changed  my  opinion." 
"  Do  yours  give  as  much,  and  as  nch  milk  as  mine  ?" 
*'  I  think  mine  give  as  much  as  yours,  bat  Jersey  cows 
give  richer  milk,  I  believe,  than  any  others." 

"  Do  mine  need  more  care  and  attention  than  yours  ?'* 
"I  suppose  they  don't  need  it,  but  they  have  more  at- 
tention than  I  give  mine." 

"No  more  care  is  bestowed  upon  mine  than  is  good 
for  them,  therefore  less  would  be  injurious  to  them,  and 
a  loss  to  me." 

It  is  not  necessary  to  repeat  any  more  of  this  con- 
versation. Suffice  it  to  say  that  the  farmer  alluded  to 
has  changed  his  views,  also  some  of  his  cows,  and  is  now 
a  firm  believer  in  Jerseys. 

Many  who  come  to  see  this  farm  ask  me  if  farming  in 
New  England  can  be  profitably  conducted.  I  tell  them 
that  they  are  on  Echo  Farm,  so  named  because  of  the 
many  excellent  echoes  which  abound  on  almost  every 
part  of  it,  and  that  if  they  will  consult  these  echoes  they 
will  assuredly  get  just  such  information  as  their  question 
calls  for.    They  have  but  to  inquire  : 

"  Tell  me.  Echo,  if  farming  can  pay  here  ?" 
Echo  answers  :  "Farming  can  pay  here." 
Strange  as  it  may  appear,  the  more  distinctly  this 
question  is  put,  the  more  audible  and  emphatic  will  be 
the  answer : 

"  Farming  can  pay  here." 


